Circus!!

On Monday night, we went to the circus. I had told Lily a couple days before that we were going to see Elephants and she did not forget it. I have not been to a circus in a long time. When we got there, they were giving kids rides on a camel, ponies, and the elephant. Lily liked to watch, but had no interest in getting on one of them. We bypassed the toys and candy (on purpose!) and found a seat. Lily was looking all over.

She had to have her own seat. Our big girl does not sit on laps anymore. :(

Lily and Daddy were checking everything out.

These people were awesome. They balanced on these balls the whole time.

The tigers were our favorite part. Lily loved to roar right along with them.

The videos were hard to capture that far away. Sorry, but Lily loves them. I want to have them available on the blog so she can see them when she wants.

I thought the Dog show was cute. They are very talented.

Yay!!! Our 1st circus.

They took an intermission at 9:15 or so, and we thought that was getting pretty late. So, we left before the circus was over. It would have been a long night, but I heard that the ending was the best. There was a woman shot out of a canon, elephant tricks, and who knows what else. ha ha! Oh well, we had fun. Lily still talks about the clowns and tigers.

Happy Birthday!!!!

Happy Birthday Emily!

We hope you have a wonderful birthday. We will see you soon.

Love you,

Matt, Abby, and Lily

Big Girl Bed!

Oh my, Oh my!!!!

The toddler bed that Grandpa Virgil made has finally made it to the Elsbury family. Many grandkids and great grandkids have slept in it and now it is Lily's turn!!

Last night was her first night and she loved it. We brought it up and made her bed and she said "Thanks guys!" It was so cute. She laid flat in it and we covered her up and that was that. This morning, she said "Mommy, I want out." So I just told her to get out and then she did by herself and said "Woah."

I am glad she loves it. Another step in our little girl's life. I can't believe it!

March 11th marks the day our house was started

These are the first pictures of our house. They dug the basement yesterday. Doesn't it look beautiful?!? ha ha! We can't wait!

Here we are!

It has been awhile since I have posted and a lot has happened. I am now on my Spring Break!!! Woo hoo! I will use these pictures to steer my update.

Lily is a crazy little girl these days. Can you see how ornery she is in this picture?? :)

Matt, Lily, and I went out into the snow. We just played in the front and back yard. We pulled Lily around the yard in the sled. Although that was fun, I am sure glad Spring is around the corner. I am sick of snow on the ground.

We are still trying to sell our house and have shown it only a couple times to possible buyers. We are getting good at cleaning up real quickly. A couple weekends ago, Matt and I went to the horse races again with some friends. Before I left to take Lily to my parents', Matt's family came to Grand Island. They were meeting at our house to pick up Landon. So, Lily and Landon got to play for a little bit.

Fun in the tent!

We didn't get to see them long because I needed to get to Gibbon. Lily then saw her other cousins, Mav and Guire. She had fun with them at the new house.

Mom and Dad's house. This is the view from the front entry way into the kitchen. That door is the pantry. The cupboards were in, but not hung up yet.


This is a view from in the kitchen looking at the electrical closet and that wall will be Mullen's wall. Mom has plans for that wall and I am anxious to see it when it is finished.


Mom is busy working on painting her wood work. It is all going to be white. This door is in the kitchen.

So, their house is going to be awesome!

Matt and I had fun at the races, but won nothing!!! We had a nice supper at a steak house. On Sunday morning, Matt and I went to church with my parents and nephews. Lily absolutely loves those boys.

On our way home we saw a bald eagle! How beautiful!

This next week we found out that the house we liked was sold. Ughhh! So, we decided to build! We drove to Doniphan that night and looked at the open lots. We picked one on a corner at the end of a culdesac (I don't know how to spell that). The next night we looked at StarHomes in town here to find which floor plan we like. We finally decided on one and they are hoping to start digging our basement tomorrow. YIKES!!! I am very excited, but nervous at the same time. We are more nervous about not selling our house. I am sure someone will come along. Cross your fingers!

This week at school it was READ ACROSS AMERICA. I had some activities set up during the week. They also earned a bead party, so we had fun for that too. They had oobleck, marshmallow and tooth pick towers, paper airplanes, Dr. Seuss musical books, and more. It is hard to believe it is now Spring Break. I get the whole week off.

Friday, I had forgotten that Heather was going to be gone. So, Matt quickly called Chris S. and she was able to watch Lily. Lily had a lot of fun and was calling Chris, grandma, when she got home. So, Lily has about 6 grandmas now. :)

On Saturday, we went to Omaha for a little vacay. We got a cheap room at the Hilton downtown so we could take Lily swimming. Silly me, I forgot my camera. So, I used my new phone.

Lily in her new swimming suit. She had a ball in the water.

We ate at Spaghetti Works and had an early night in the room. We had a great breakfast in the morning and went shopping. Lily was not a happy camper in the Furniture Mart so we drug her out and left. How long will these terrible twos last????

We then went to Scott and Eliza's to see them and their new house. Aunt Gigi came to see us too. Again, no camera, so I only took a few pics.

The start of my Spring Break! I have been doing computer work and just plain relaxing. AAHHHH! Everybody should get a week off from work. :) I attached this next video of Lily singing Jesus Loves Me that quickly turns into her ABC's. I just smile every time she sings. She is driven by music and she has such a cute voice. :) Enjoy!

Our trip to Lodgepole

We, the Elsburys, left for Lodgepole on Thursday evening. Matt and I did not have work on Friday and Lily took the day off from daycare (ha ha). We went out to John and Laurie's to have some relaxing family time with them. Lily loves to play with the boys. Mom and Dad came with Caden Sydney on Friday and Virgie came later on Friday night.

It wouldn't be fun if there wasn't ball throwing or wrestling!

Friday was a relaxing day, the boys didn't have school either. Matt took the boys hunting while Lily and I hung out with Laurie and just relaxed. The hunters didn't get anything, but they believe they saw a huge animal. I don't know about that! :) We went into town for lunch and when we made it back, Grandma and Grandpa were there with the Ferzely kids (minus Delanie).

Lily and Sydney loved looking at Mully's picture collage. I found myself looking at it a lot also. So many good memories! I sure do miss him.

Caden, Delanie, and Lily gave each other Valentine's. Here they are enjoying the fun dips from Sydney!!!


Friday evening we went to the high school basketball games. Maverick is the boys' student manager and it was parents night. I hadn't been to a high school basketball game in a long time. We also have officially entered the life of a crazy child taken over by the terrible twos. Oh my goodness, sometimes I don't even recognize her. :) She threw many fits at the basketball game and needless to say, we went home earlier than everyone else. She did miss her nap, but geez!

I did include a video of their half time dancing. During the girls' game, they open up the floor to the audience to dance. Lily was all for it. She ran out there with Guire and Syd. She actually did not want to come off the floor. That was probably fit #1. :)




Virgie then came that night. We had already put Lily to bed for everyone's sanity. :) She was unhappy, but she was overly tired! Those of you who have gone through the twos probably understand my feelings completely.

Saturday morning, we had breakfast and then went to town again for Mav and Guire's games. They each had their own game and both did great. It is so neat to watch them play.

Guire playing great defense. He is so quick!

Don't they look ornery?

Gigi and the kids.

Maverick driving to the basket.

After their games we went and had some lunch. All of us were there except John. He had an event in Valentine. We had a great lunch and then went to a pond to feed the ducks.

Why hello Gigi, Mav, and Lily. Was this picture before or after we got pulled over??? Yeah, Matt was speeding. The cop only gave Matt a warning because "ethically, he couldn't give Matt a ticket for speeding when he was speeding too." That is okay with me. He then gave us Sydney Police Dept. stickers. What a nice guy! :)

The geese were in the middle of the pond and wouldn't come in for bread. So, the ducks definitely filled up on a few loaves of bread.


Mom, Dad, Caden, and Sydney went home on Saturday afternoon. So, we rested a little in the house and then took Lily out to see the cows.

John's cows have had a lot of calves. Lily did well seeing them up close this year. I think she could be Uncle John's ranch hand this summer. What do you think Uncle John?

On Saturday, Laurie's mom and aunt came. We played around the house and then John, Laurie, Virgie, Matt, and I went to the Junkyard for a few drinks and karaoke. Yes, we actually sang two songs. I don't think it was very good, but we did it! Thanks for taking us out J&L.

Sunday morning came too fast. We had a relaxing morning playing Guitar hero, and then we packed up and went home. We had a great time!

Happy Birthday Maverick!!!

Happy Birthday Mav!!!!

We hope you had a great day!

We love you,

Uncle Matt, Aunt Abby, and Lily

Happy Birthday Scott!

Happy Birthday to Scott!!!!

He is a lucky guy to have his birthday on Valentine's Day. He was even luckier this year, because they moved into their new house this weekend. Yay!!!! I can't wait to see you.

I hope you had a wonderful birthday Scott!!!!

We love you,

Matt, Abby, and Lily Jo



HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY everyone!!!!!

What is up?

I feel bad, because I haven't taken any pictures in awhile. I just finished my two nights of parent-teacher conferences, but have 5 more tomorrow morning. Kids do not have school on Wed, Thurs, Fri. Anyway, we have been busy, but not too interesting. ha ha! The biggest thing that has happened is Lily getting potty trained. We are done with diapers!!! Now, just getting through the night dry is the next step. I am so proud of Lily, she is doing great! It was like over night!!! On Saturday, Matt and Lily went to O'Neill to see Grandma, Grandpa, and Aunt Emily. Matt went ice fishing with Mark but didn't get anything. Lily got to play with Gma and Emily. It sounded like they had fun. I stayed home and got some rest, work done for school and for my masters class. I don't like being away from Matt and Lily, but it was nice to have the day to myself. I went and got a manicure and pedicure too! :) Then, Asia and I got a few drinks. Ha ha, that never happens! We had fun visiting and probably stayed longer than Brian was thinking.

Matt and Lily came back on Sunday morning. We had someone come look at the house that afternoon, so we did some cleaning. :) Yes, we are still trying to sell this thing. Quite a few people have called Matt, but just no buyers yet.

I am on my 3rd week of online class and its going good so far. I hope I get a lot out of it. I really have to make myself stay on top of things and not procrastinate. Its a nice routine to get into.

I have conferences tomorrow morning and then a work day. Thursday is a meeting (I have to present) and then Friday, Matt and I have the day off. Our plans are to go West to John and Laurie's. We haven't been out there in awhile and are looking forward to it. I think the boys even have a game we will get to see.

Pictures will be on the next post! I promise!!! :)

Yay Lily!!

Lily has turned the corner with potty training! I am a proud mommy!!! She had two accidents Saturday morning, and has been dry ever since. She is not fighting us anymore either. This has been a trying time at the Elsbury home. ha ha!

We are getting more aggressive with selling the house now. It is now in the paper and is on the Starostka website. So, I am crossing my fingers for a sale with out a realtor. We went to Doniphan to look at the house with my parents on Sunday and it made me want it even more.

Journal of my week

Well, I feel like the week went by so fast. I didn't have time to blog until now. I have recently started a bible study with some friends on Thursday, so that is something new that I am enjoying. My school had library night one night and then Matt and I also went to a Ducks Unlimited sponsors banquet this week while my mom watched Lily. We are blessed to have her so close and willing to watch her. Lily was excited. She has Grandma wrapped around her finger, because she was still up sitting on the couch when I got home around 9:30. Stinker!

On Saturday, I had my first day of my new Masters Program at Midland Lutheran College in Fremont. Eliza works there and had told me about this new program they were starting. It is geared towards teachers that want to be leaders, but are not ready to leave their classroom to become a principal. This is an 18 month program and mostly online. I will have to go to Fremont about every 8 weeks for a Saturday class. I think I can handle it! So, I will be on my computer more now. (Matt might tell you that is impossible for me to be on my computer more than I am now.)

We have our new countertop and sink in our bathroom now. It looks great. Matt is also having to do some drywall work and painting around the countertop. Our goal is to sell this house soon. We are going to put a For Sale sign in our yard this week. I bet it will then sell like hotcakes!!! Don't you think? A house just sold down the street, so we are thinking it might be a good time. Who knows! We have our eyes on a house in Doniphan. So, we are getting excited to the thought of moving to a small town. It is kinda stressful thinking about it also. My parents and sister's family are both moving to new houses, so we thought we would too. No, it is just too good to pass up right now. Any buyers out there?!?

As far as work goes, we both made it through. The first graders are doing great. I am having a lot of fun this year. My kids have words of the week next week, so I will be glad when that is done. Lily has not mastered potty training yet, but its looking better. Heather might say differently. Lily is not as good with the other kids. She gets preoccupied with them and doesn't go. So, we will see.

I hope I have time to blog more often. Have a good week!

Abby

Sledding

Lily's 1st sledding experience!

We went out to Grandpa and Grandma's pasture and found a hill that still had snow on it. It was perfect to sled down because it wasn't too long for the walk back up. All three of us got bundled up and away we went. I went down first so I could capture the moment. She absolutely loved it!

Lily and Daddy

Lily and Mommy
Each time I took her, I think we ended up flipping to the side. I wasn't as good as Daddy.

Snow angels!!

Priceless!

She liked bailing out of the sled. Fearless!

I don't know why kids have a fascination of eating snow. Do you??

That same weekend, we took the jeep out for a drive. Matt wanted to see how it did in the snow. I am not a big fan of Winter jeepin', but he loves it! So, we went out North of GI and found some fun roads.

Big snowdrift

I am ready for all of this snow to disappear. When will the snow come out?!?

Back to the grind stone

After Christmas break the temperature dropped to new records. GIPS had school for teachers on Mon, Tues, and then Wed. for kids. We got 'cold' days on Thursday and Friday. After having Christmas break, I was ready to be back at school. Although it is very nice to sleep in and wear pajamas all day, I was ready to get back into a routine. On Friday, a couple teachers came over to play a few game. Lily and I wanted to add a little fun to our 'cold' day. That was the first time I remember playing Scrabble. I got hooked. I made Matt play me that evening and then again. ha ha! My mom visited us and we even made her play. I did a little more work on Lily's dollhouse, but it still isn't finished. Most of the shingles are on, but it is playable.


Her dolls and furniture came in the mail and she enjoys playing with them. Its cute to watch her use her imagination.

The dollhouse is about as big as her! Once again, she loves to wear mommy's boots.

On Sunday, my parents came to town and took us out for lunch. Then, we had another match of Scrabble before they left. Dad was not amused. :) As Sunday was coming to an end, I kept thinking about my long week ahead of me. I hadn't worked 5 days straight since before Christmas. Yikes!

The kids were really good. I started dragging around Wednesday. Lily was definitely in a "two year old" mood towards the end of the week. Matt was used to working, so he was fine. We are still trying to potty train Lily and it has its ups and downs. For some reason, she does not like sitting on the potty if it is our idea. Any ideas???

We are proud parents though! She is talking up a storm and has a wonderful memory. She amazes us every day. I thank God for our precious little girl. I couldn't imagine life with out her. Mommyhood is priceless.

So, the week dragged on, but I finally made it through it. I ended the school week with a snow party with my 1st graders and another 1st grade class. They had a great time. It is amazing that a lot of them didn't know how to make a snowman. I couldn't remember the last time I made a snow angel, so I asked them to make angels with me!

So cute!!!


So, here we are: Lily and I in our pajamas watching cartoons. Daddy is doing a little work and then working on the jeep. He is determined to get it ready for the river a little earlier this year. :)

Ta Ta!!!

Happy Birthday Grandpa Mark!

Grandpa Mark's birthday was on January 14th.
We hope you had a great day!

Love, Matt, Abby and Lily

Happy Anniversary!

Happy Anniversary to John and Laurie! (yesterday)

They got married on January 4th of 1997. I hope you two have another great year! We love you!

Matt, Abby, and Lily

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! 2010

It wasn't until Tuesday that we finally knew our plans for New Years Eve. My parents and sister so graciously agreed to watch Lily that night. We went to Omaha with Chris and Tara to hang out at the boats. We haven't hung out with them, so it was a well deserved evening. :)

The casinos were very busy (not surprising) so it was hard to find a table. We finally got in on a Roulette game, so we stayed there most of the night. Matt and I did not do well, but we had fun. We sat next to a couple from Minnesota, they were nice. She was very lucky and it was fun joking around with them.

Of course we got champagne for the New Year! I can't believe it is 20-10. I called my Dad shortly after to wish them a Happy New Year and for them to give Lily Jo a kiss. Wow, off to another great year!!!

I took this at the Roulette table. Then BAM! a little guy quickly came over and scolded me for taking a picture. He demanded that I delete it, but I just shut it off. He told me that I might see things in the picture that might help me cheat. I told him I wasn't that smart! ha ha! Good picture for the new year though!

Another picture in the casino at the restaurant. I guess we weren't supposed to take this picture either. Geez!!

Well, it was a late night, but we finally spent all our money and headed back. The New Year started with us shopping for a coat for me. I like it a lot. Matt is a good shopping partner. It is so much easier when you aren't carrying a heavy 2 year old that runs and hides every time you put her down. She tires me out!!! ha ha!

We went to Gibbon to eat supper with my parents and Gigi and picked up Lily. I loved that it was only Friday! We could be together for the whole weekend.


Dollhouse!!!!!

Saturday morning, we started in on the 1,000+ piece dollhouse (it seems like that many pieces). Matt painted the outside blue and interior the color of our living room. I picked the hard job of painting all the trim, windows, railings, shutters, flower boxes and more - white. We also have to soak the 800 shingles in stain. Yay, fun!

Matt got the walls all up and onto the foundation. My shutters are in the process of being painted.

Those are the window frames. Can you see that we were trying to build this with a 2 year old that likes to sit on your lap and play with calculators and cabbage patches??

That isn't even all the shingles.

More of it is done!

I will post pictures of the completed dollhouse. I didn't realize it would be this time consuming and tedious. I enjoy it more than Matt. I like puzzles and he doesn't. He would rather sit in a tractor and push snow! Which he is doing right now. Yes, we got a little more snow. Ugh! I am blogging when I should be doing report cards. Well, I have 5 done and 13 more to go. Not bad, huh?

I hope everyone is off to a great 2010!!!! My vacation is over soon, so my countdown has started for spring break! ha ha!

Toodles!