2018- The Year Of Changes

Happy 2018 everyone!!

January always seems to be a month of reflection for the past year and expectation of the year to come. As any parent of 4 children would agree, this past year was a busy one! We now have three kids attending the local Christian school, Spring Vale Christian School.

Shayna is in 7th grade and attends part time (Monday, Wednesday, Friday) and home schools part time. This allows her a more flexible schedule that can accommodate her busy dance schedule. She is very dedicated to dance. This past year she took her grade II ballet exam and passed with the highest grade. She will soon begin her competition season with dances in tap, jazz, contemporary, and acro.  She also celebrated a birthday December 16th and at 13 she has now officially joined the teenage gain.

Levi is a sophomore this year. He has been very busy with soccer and basketball. He has also joined the drama club this year which I believe he will be a good fit for him! And if all that isn't enough, he is also on the honors club each quarter. He is 15 and is taller than everyone else in the house except his dad, but he will catch up or pass him soon! One of Levi's favorite activities is to figure out how things work (reminds me a lot of his Grandpa Boese!). He is very helpful with any projects around the house. I foresee an engineering career in his future!

Liberty is a junior this year. She enjoyed playing volleyball on the varsity team this year. She even had the most ace serves out of her whole team. She turned 17 this year on December 29th and to celebrate she decided to get 15 inches cut off of her hair! She LOVES it and is very happy with how much easier it is to take care of. Her hard work with school has payed off and she also has been on the honor's club each quarter. She has been anxious to learn to drive, but we haven't been quite as ready, so we are hoping to look into that this summer.

Isabella is the only child I have left in full-time home school. It has been an adjustment for both of us, some times she misses her brothers and sisters and some times she likes having mommy all to herself! She turned 8 in September. She enjoys taking a couple dance classes one night a week. The rest of the time you will either find her playing with Barbies, her sister Shayna, or a combination of the two :) She also decided she wanted a hair cut the other day. So we decided to finally let her have her first real hair cut (it's only been trimmed before) and I cut 6 inches off! It looks SO cute, but she also looks older!

With the busy hurricane season this fall, Lyle ended up being out of town for work for 6 weeks. He ended up out of town on our 20th anniversary, but he surprised me by buying a plane ticket for me to join him in Texas! So we were able to be together on our anniversary and we had a relaxed time. We even got to go to the beach. enjoy the very warm gulf water, and put some sand between my toes :)

It was SO hard to get back on a plane to come home and leave such a huge part of my heart behind. Lyle ended up being transferred to Florida for a time and then ended up in Virginia/Maryland to help out with all the insurance claims. He ended up coming home and surprising us a few times for a quick weekend trip, and then in the beginning of October he was able to come home to stay!!

Well- those are just a few highlights of our year. As we look forward to the upcoming year we are thankful for all the many blessings God has poured out on us and we are thankful for all of our friends and family. We pray that you also will have a wonderful 2018!!
~The Kendrick Family

2017- Happy New Year!!

Happy New Year friends and family from our family to yours. It has been so long since I've sent out an update, some of you probably thought I've fallen off the planet. Well, rest assured I have not- it is just the product of being a wife and full time mom to 4 kiddos who are busy and keep us busy.


First up is our oldest, Liberty. She just turned 16 and is a Sophomore in high school. She attends Spring Vale Christian School which is just down the road. She has been busy with volleyball (this was her first year on Varsity), being on the honor role, and basketball. She ended up falling and splitting her knee open, which required 14 stitches. That has delayed her basketball playing as she heals, but she hoping to get back at it when they come back from winter break. For her birthday she was able to fulfill a lifelong dream and have a horseback riding party!! She will also be enjoying her birthday present of 5 horseback riding lessons. 

Next up is Levi, who is 14 1/2 and a freshman at Spring Vale Christian School. He has been enjoying baseball this summer, soccer and basketball this school year. He is a point guard for the JV team and has been enjoying working hard to improve his skills, which is easier said than done with all his growth spurts he has been having! (my grocery bill feels the pain!) Levi got glasses this year and it has greatly improved his ability to do his school work, but also made him look so much older! His favorite pass-times are playing Minecraft, using his imagination to construct whatever he can think of, and playing sports. 

 Our third kiddo is Shayna. She just turned 12 and is enjoying her last year of homeschooling, she will be attending Spring Vale for junior high next year. She is a busy girl with dance 4 nights a week and she absolutely loves it. She is taking jazz, ballet, tap, and gymnastics. She is also very interested in painting, she has been known to watch Bob Ross for inspiration and then go and paint her own beautiful paintings. So for her birthday this year we surprised her with a painting party. We went to Painting With Twist and had a very fun time painting a snow man picture together. We also had a fun time together at a Secret Keeper Girl event earlier this year. She is also kept busy by her younger sister who seems to think that Shayna is the best :)

That takes us to our youngest, Isabella. She turned 7 in September. That is still very hard for me to fathom- it is definitely going by very fast!! She is enjoying home school, some days more than others ;) She is also enjoying some dance classes, tap and gymnastics.

As you can see, she's been loosing teeth left and right! She really enjoys playing with her dollies, big sisters and brother, and beating her mom at Mario Kart!

The past year has also been filled with Lyle traveling for ministry as the Youth and Young Adult Ministry Director and planning and ministering at Michigan Youth camp. It has been such a blessing to see God move in the hearts and lives of the next generation. God is Good!

Our family is looking forward to the new year, and what God will do during that time. The first thing I read in the new year was Isaiah 62 and it seems fitting. "you will be called by a new name.." "You will be a crown of splendor in the Lord's hand" "so will your God rejoice over you" It feels like the new year is bringing new seasons and I am excitedly expecting to see God do great things this year. Even though busy seems to be the one word I would use to describe this past year- I wouldn't trade any of it- it is exactly where I want to be. May this next year be blessed for you all~

Happy New Year!!

2014 already? Say it isn't so!! This has been quite the whirlwind of a year which seems to have finished with a blast! Michigan was hit with a bad ice storm on December 21. We lost power that evening and went without electricity for one week!! Everything was coated with at least a half an inch of ice which looked so beautiful, but the tree limbs came crashing to the ground and caused so much damage. Our county actually called a state of emergency as so many power lines were down and tree limbs were blocking roads.

My birthday on the 23rd ended up being an interesting time as we had to leave our home for the night since we couldn't keep the house warm enough for us to stay :( We were so thankful for friends who let us invade their home so we could shower and clean up (that hot shower felt like such a luxury!!). The boarding school that is affiliated with our church allowed us to stay in their girls dorm as the students are on winter break...such a blessing!! Later that day we decided that the best thing for our family was to make the major investment of a generator, our budget didn't like it- but it had to be done. So the next day Lyle and a friend from church got it up and going and we were able to come home that night! The generator was able to run our furnace and water pump and other little things...what a blessing to be home again!!!! I'm very ready for a little calmness now after that adventure!

December is always a big month for our family since it is when we get to celebrate 3 birthdays. Shayna turned 9 and Liberty turned 13. (Yes I've now entered the parent of a teenager club...any helpful advice?) It is so fun to spoil the girls on their special days. They are some pretty special little ladies!

Liberty has successfully completed her first semester of 7th grade at Spring Vale Academy, which is the school associated with our local church. She had so many things to adjust to as she had only been home schooled her whole life. She has sure blossomed while attending there. She has enjoyed playing volleyball, cheer leading, and her art class. All her hard work on her grades paid off as she was on the honor role the whole semester! If you would be interested in being a sponsor to help financially with Liberty's tuition, please feel free to contact me for more information :)

I pray you have a blessed 2014 and that God's hand would be evident in your lives,

Hope, Lyle, Liberty, Levi, Shayna and Isabella

...and Harley :)

Family Life

Hello Friends and Family,
Life has been one busy season after another. I thought summer was busy with youth camp (where 3 of my kiddos got baptized), family trip Missouri for a wedding and Wisconsin for a family reunion, and trying to catch up with home school. But now we are in full swing of our home school schedule with something new for us added in this year. Our oldest, Liberty, is attending a christian school for Junior High. It has been a big adjustment for our family with my ups and downs, but I think we have the hang of it now.

She is adjusting great to all the new things that come with transitioning from the home school environment to the traditional school routine. She loves volleyball, even though she had a major accident at the last practice. The knee of a teammate collided with her mouth and her lips got stuck in her braces :( It took a whole hour at the orthodontist to get them unstuck. (major swelling and cuts) One of her teeth was pushed back so we'll have to wait and see if it survives, but she is back to school after missing 2 days.

Liberty wasn't the only one with a recent boo-boo. Isabella tripped and fell and hit her head on our fireplace (again!). So part of her birthday celebrations included a field trip to the ER where they glued her forehead closed (again! did I mention that already? She already did this once about 5 months ago!) Above is a picture of her celebrating her 4th birthday, Hello Kitty :)

Our family recently took a quick vacation to Niagara Falls. It was a new experience for all of us to be in another country, but we love an adventure, so off we went!

We spent a whole day just walking and enjoying God's magnificent creation, creating memories to last a lifetime.

We were even able to Journey Behind the Falls where we could go to a lower observation deck (and get wet!). There was also a tunnel that went being the falls with two peep holes where you could see the massive amounts of water that go over the falls.

And no trip to the falls would be complete without a trip on the Maid of the Mist. Bella loved the boat ride, but was not a fan of getting wet again.

After all the walking and late nights spent at the hotel pool, we were all ready to head home and thankful for being back in our own beds again. But I'd have to say that my favorite memory of the weekend was waking up to my little 4 year old singing Jesus Loves Me in the dark hotel room. I love that the first thing she did was sing praise to the Lord, and I asked Jesus to help me to be more like that! Too often I hurriedly get up because there is so much to do that day, I bet it would go smoother if I had taken a little time to praise the Lord!

God bless you friends :)

It's been awhile, but we haven't fallen off the planet :)

Hello Friends and Family,
There has been a lot going on in the Kendrick household. The best word to describe this past season of our life would be "crazy-busy" (is that two words?) So let me fill you in.

Lyle and I have spent this past school season as Senior class sponsors for our churches Christian boarding school that is just down the road. This has been a huge responsibility as our goal was to raise enough money for the class to take a trip to Washington DC. Well, we did it :)

Our kids have also been crazy busy. They successfully finished up another year of Awanas.

And Shayna has been busy with dance. She was asked to join the competition team this year and has LOVED every minute of it. She is constantly doing back walk overs and splits.

Liberty and Levi are also playing softball and baseball again this spring with their cousins.

We even made a quick trip to Iowa in May so Lyle could perform a wedding and baptize a friend. It was so good to see every one that we miss from there and we hope to make it a yearly thing to visit. While there Liberty also decided it was time for her summer haircut, and as a bonus she was able to donate her beautiful think hair again. So we met up with our dear friend Katie!

 We also have a new addition to our family. Everyone's cries were finally heard and we decided to find a furry friend to add to our family. We found a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, and we named him Harley. He is only four months old and still in full-on puppy mode for sure, but he is a great addition to our family :)

We are hoping that life will slow down a little now that the school year is over and our sponsoring responsibilities are over. We are planning a trip in a few weeks to Missouri for a wedding and then on to Wisconsin for a family reunion. We are really looking forward to seeing loved ones we haven't seen in a while.

Also if you would, could you please remember our family in your prayers over the next few weeks? Lyle was unexpectedly called to Illinois for work and we don't know how long he'll be there. It is a blessing to have the work, but we really miss our daddy and husband when he is not here! And we can't wait for him to come home!!
God bless you all :)
Hope

New Year, New view and birthday news.

Happy new year!!
So the whole reason for this blog was to record the lessons that I continually find myself learning while on this home school journey. I have reached a new conclusion that seems to be both emotional and freeing for me. I am not equipped to meet all of my children's learning needs! But I can find ways to make sure that their needs are still meet. For our family that has meant a pretty significant change in our home school curriculum over the winter break (all made possible by the additional income of Lyle working in New York!)

Ever since we have started I seemed to just have a hodgepodge of different workbooks to go through with the kiddos, which worked well for the most part, but I also observed definite lacking. As the demands for the higher grades became more, the less adequate this method seemed to be. I couldn't make up for the slack myself, and it was very difficult for me to feel like I wasn't giving my children the best education I could. But I also had to realistically look at what I had to work with and face the fact, I needed some help.

So I started the search. I found an awesome christian home school program with streaming video that would actually instruct my children in English, Reading, and History, taking our schooling from a "filling out a workbook" style to "receiving instruction and working on an assignment" style. I've always wanted it to be this way, but just couldn't do it by myself. So I could either continue to struggle and feel bad, or come to the conclusion that I needed help and get it! We have tried it for the past few days and I am so pleased with it, my kids are excited about learning again and I can't wait to do it with them.

So here's the new view: Getting the help I need to teach my children makes me a good home school mom, not my ability to actually do the instructing.

On the family front, Lyle is still home and it looks like he may be staying, but no official word yet. Also Liberty turned 12 on the 29th (enjoy the pictures) and we have been down and out with the flu for 2 weeks. I am very ready to get back to our routine and have a healthy family again.

She got her ears pierced for her birthday.

Birthday pie with horses :)

Birthday girl getting ready to blow out the candles.

Present time :) With little sister onlookers.

Getting a pedi as part of her present from Aunt B

Surprises and birthdays!

Hello Friends,

What an eventful month we have had! Our family usually has an exciting December as we have three birthdays crammed in this one month, but this year has been the best yet. As my last blog stated, Lyle has been sent to New York on temporary assignment for his job to help with the hurricane insurance claims. He has been working a grueling schedule and has seen over 130 properties in just one month! He left November 11th and we were hoping that he could make it back in time for Shayna's 8th birthday on the 16th of December, but things were not looking good.

We went over to my sisters house for a family supper on Friday the 14th and before we prayed for the food my brother in law gave a speech about how they had a birthday present for all three of us December birthdays to share. So we proceeded out onto their deck where there was a big dishwasher box with a big bow on it. And on the count of three we all opened it and out popped LYLE!! There were screams, tears, and lots of questions!! But we all agreed it was the best birthday presents ever!!!

So now that we had our daddy we plunged head first into a princess birthday party for Miss Shayna who turned 8! It was a wonderful time with 9 other little girls.

We did makeovers first.

Made our own jeweled crowns!

Danced at the royal ball.

Ate some royal cake.

Opened presents.

And played the Princess and the Pea game.

It was a blast, I'm exhausted, but I'd do it all over again :)

As for Lyle, he is technically home for a visit until after the 25th, which at that time they will evaluate if and where they need him to go back and work out east. Until then he is working from home at the computer and enjoying family time. Thank you all for your prayers and support, I couldn't have done it without the help of our family and local friends, and a special thank you to all of those who have blessed me with their friendship, keeping me company, and lending a helping a hand.

Love and God bless you all,

Hope, Lyle, Liberty, Levi, Shayna, and Isabella