Dawson Crew Log

Our Birthday Boy!

2009-11-26T08:54:00.002-05:00

Can't believe that Ethan is ONE!!! Wow! It went so fast. He is so much fun and absolutely adorable. Here's a picture of our big boy! His birthday was Tuesday. Today is Thursday, Thanksgiving....So Happy Thanksgving to all of our friends. We are spending the day serving the homeless and less fortunate. We are looking forward to it! God Bless you all!

Our Field Trip to the Zoo

2009-10-02T10:21:00.002-04:00

We had a great time at the zoo last week. It was a hot day, but worth it. Bailey's and Parker's favorite part were the Lorakeet birds. We fed them and they got right on our hands while they ate. So exciting! Asher loved it ALL, Ana loved feeding the Sting Rays. Always a favorite of hers. We did that last and she had a hard time waiting to get to see them. She survived and it was worth it. A man that worked with the sting rays gave us sting ray teeth, very interesting! Cecilia absolutely loved feeding the giraffes. Everytime it's long tongue touched her she would giggle so loud and just squeal with delight. My heart beats so fast with joy when I see my kids get so excited over things. Truly a fantastic day! A ton of fun, right along with a ton of learning. Each child was given an age appropriate "Zoo Scavenger Hunt." They had to find what was on the list and then write or draw what they found. It ranged from something stripped, from Africa, or cold-blodded, etc.... Very cool, they all did great searching and writing.
The water park was important to our hot day at the zoo. The kids loved being able to cool off in the water and then move on to the next place.

Hanging upside down with the bats!

Wedding pictures, part 1

2009-09-21T12:52:00.004-04:00

13 sweet years of marriage to a man who has definitely made me a better person. All of the "growing pains" have been worth it . 6 kids to call our own, who have not taken away from our marriage, as some might think, but have made it stronger and better. No regrets! I look forward to the many, many more years that we have. Praise God for all that he has done through us!

Pics from the 4th of July

2009-08-28T09:36:00.002-04:00

These are just some fun pictures that my father and I took of the kids on the 4th of July. Parker found a grasshopper and then had a great time with it. Most of the kids took a turn holding it. Made for some great pictures.

To my Friends

2009-08-26T14:18:00.001-04:00

I know that it has been a long time since I have posted. To be really honest, Blogging and Facebook have not had room in my life. Raising kids up to become men and women passionate for Christ, homeschooling them, being a wife, friend and keeper of my home have been far more important and tremendously time consuming. Things are well with me and our family. However, there are personal areas that I have to concentrate on. Right now, Ana is reading a book to Ethan (who is now 9 months), Asher, Parker and CeCe are reading a book together and Bay is practicing piano. So, I decided to steal a few minutes to write this. Unfortunately, I will not be sharing photos right now, even though there are so many that I want to share. You'll just have to wait. In the meantime, here is a little of what is going on...This year Bay is taking a science class that is challanging him and he loves it. He works with his dad 2 hours 4-5 days a week and loves it. This Sunday he will be officially part of the youth. A little scary and exciting at the same time. I fear that the time I have with him is growing short. He is becoming a man and I will have to let go before I know it. So, with that in mind, I am finding ways everyday to grow my relationship with him. I am very blessed with the relationship that I have with him and am enjoying seeing how well he is handling the reponibilities and freedoms that are increasing with his age. Honestly, I love our heart to heart conversations about life! Ana...well she is also growing way to quickly. She is so much like me that it drives me crazy, which only means that I have to work that much harder to keep her and I in the right relationship. IT's worth the extra effort!! Ana will be turing 10 in 3.5 months. Wow!!! She is reading so much more, loves serving people and her heart grows daily. She has such a love for people and such a sweet spirit about her. (Guess she does have some of her dad in her too.) Recently, Ana did something that reminded me of me so much that all I could do was cry. It was something that I struggled with growing up and still do. As Jo from Little Woman said, " I am hopelessly flawed!" :) Well, lets just say that because I saw her struggle and could relate, God gave me the ability and insight to deal with it the right way. Praise God! Had I not, that open window to her heart could have been easily shut and locked! I don't ever want her to feel like she can not open her heart to me whenever. Parker is Parker. He no longer looks like a little boy. He has lost his baby face. He is silly about almost everything, yet very serious about much. It really is a strange combination. He does not like change, wants everything in its place, loves to please me and always wants to get things right. He also loves to play practical jokes and is so quick-witted that we often ended up in tears from laughing so hard. He is playing the piano now and is so serious about his practice. Cece is always there to try something new. She is so smart and I have to keep my eyes on her. She loves playing with her siblings and loves going to church. She is in first grade this year. Asher is 4 and still has a way of just stealing my heart. He is so smart and always eagar to learn! He has a bond with my father (his pop-pop) that is amazing. I am so happy about that. Ethan is getting big and crawling everywhere. He loves to "talk." He is walking along the furniture, eats anything you let him (even though he only has 2 teeth), and is all and all SPOILED. But we are having fun spoiling him. Greg is staying busy in his business and is doing so much to grow it. I am so proud of how he is handling his company and his responsibilities at home. He has grown so much these last few months. I am so honored that I am his wife! Me...well, I really am hopelessly flawed! I love where I am and what I am blessed to have in my short time here. I strive to grow, so that ALL that I do glorifies my Saviour and Lord. I Praise Him for everything I am able to accomplish! Now, it is time to go sing my sweet baby to sleep. I will try and post pics soon....but no promises! Love you all!

Only by His grace,
Deanna

Molly

2009-06-30T08:55:00.003-04:00

I realized I never put up a pic of Molly, our pony. So here she is. She is very pretty and very stuborn. That is star next to her. Star liked to eat Molly's food. Molly did not seem to mind. Star is no longer with us- she was sold. Leon (our bunny) is missing in action. So we now only have the chicken, Molly and our dog. Things are always changing around here.

The Graduate

2009-06-28T19:58:00.005-04:00

How blessed we were to be able to be a part of Meagan's graduation today. She was in my 3rd and 4th grade girls Sunday School class AND now she is graduating...wow!! She has become such a beautiful young lady. The picture above is a really neat cake...yum!

We were doubly blessed by being able to spend time with sweet Sarah. She was also in my Sunday School class. We have not seen her for over a year, so it was great catching up. These are the girls that my 2 beautiful girls look up to. I think they are great girls to admire!

My Cecilia loves praying for Sarah. She has a very special place in her heart for her.

Hanging with the Councils

2009-06-28T19:46:00.002-04:00

We had the honor of having Anna Council and her kids visit us for a day. We all had a great time! I think the kids were all tuckered out by the end of the day. Then the next day, we met them all at the beach and had another fun day.

I loves Ethan's cute toes!

Oldest and Dearest Friends

2009-06-28T19:35:00.003-04:00

We recently went to some friends house for a swim party and stayed til late, having a fantastic time. We always love getting to spend time with the Walkers. We ended the night with the a Wii game: Disney's Dance, Dance Revolution. I loved it and can't wait to get one for our house. The kids insisted that we all take turns, but I had a hard time.

This picture was not taken the same day, but I decided to add it because it is too cute!

Friends!

2009-06-15T16:33:00.009-04:00

Douglettes and Dawslings (a.k.a. Douglas and Dawson)

Pool Party

Beach Time!

2009-06-15T16:15:00.004-04:00

We had a great time at the beach a few weeks ago. Ethan loved being outside--he just chilled and slept, never cried. He definitly loves being outside! The kids had a great time playing with each other. They really are best buds! It was a funtabulous day!

Catching Up...

2009-05-27T16:12:00.005-04:00

Ethan is 6 months!

Kids love to do school together and keep Ethan company. We are winding down the school year.

Parker's very first derby car. He was competing with his RA (Royal Ambassadors) class. He had a great time!

Bailey's car

This was also Bailey's first derby and likely his last. He is going into 7th grade and will no longer be in RA's or AWANA. He also had a great time. Placed 3rd, with only 2 racing...long story! Bailey was a champ about it!

Asher turns 4!!!!

Cece and Ana painted a block of wood with a car and a happy birthday message. They did that while the boys made their derby cars..I think they felt left out. Asher liked his gift from them.

Awana Ceremony

My camara battery was dying, so I did not get any good pics. All of this kids had serveral verses to quote..they did great. Asher was a ham on stage!

Our precious baby watermelon.

The kids are helping with a garden this year. This is my first real attempt at one, though I talk about it every year. Our watermelon look wonderful and we can't wait to eat one. We have several growing now.
Below was actually the end of our gardening day and the kids were on the way to cooling off in the pool. It felt great! We were really dirty and needed it.

Our two watermelon plants. They were seeds to a watermelon that we ate a long time ago. Parker likes to plant seeds and threw them in two plastic pots and months later, we noticed plants growing. It took some time to realize what they were. We were thrilled when we saw a watermelon growing. The first one was eaten by a squirl, we were sad (and mad). Now I have replanted them in bigger space and I think they are happy! We will rejoice when we get to eat one.

Cherry tomatoes...yum!

We have lots of herbs, watermelon, a pineapple plant, black beans, cucumbers, tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, green peppers, red peppers, and banana peppers

My herb garden

I know it seems strange to have a brick garden, but my uncle read that the bricks work great. He has great success with this method. It just so happend that we recieved over 100 of these for free and they have been slowly used. I had what I needed to give a garden a go and so here it is. The kids are so excited to grow food and so am I. My mother supplied me with many of the starter plants. I will let you know how things go.

Just can't resist sharing...

2009-05-11T22:43:00.003-04:00

I Love this picture!

Happy Mother's Day

2009-05-11T22:28:00.002-04:00

I had a wonderful Mother's Day! I am so blessed to be a mommy...There is not much that can top how wonderful it is. Here are a few pics of our day. I hate having my picture taken, but I am putting our family pic in here. It was taken after church. The rest of the pics were later in the afternoon at my mother-in-law's home. We had a great afternoon there, swimming and enjoying a meal together.

Ethan at 5 months

2009-05-04T22:38:00.004-04:00

Ethan is always the center of attention for Ana and Cece

Snuggling and sleeping with daddy.

Ethan loves to suck his toes.

Here Ethan is enjoying his first taste of rice cereal. He enjoyed it!

When the heat is here, the pool is near!

2009-05-01T11:17:00.005-04:00

We love having a pool next door at my parent's house. Below I have posted pics of the kids enjoying it. Here is a quick update on our family... We have had a rough few months with sickness seeming to control our lives. School has been off and on. My dad was hospitalized 3 times in the last few months, but is now doing better. Though he does have some more heart stints and a surgury in his near future. So please keep praying for him. This experience has caused all of our families (my parents, brother's and sister's) to take a good look at our health. We have all made drastic changes and are seeing great results. Though things have been difficult, I still can't complain. Greg and I are blessed with 6 wonderful children and a marriage that stands firm on Christ's love. Our children are growing too fast, but what a blessing to see how their character is developing. Also, Greg's business is plentiful right now. We praise God for the work. If you are reading this, please take the time to ponder the blessings that are before you and give God the glory for them. We love you all, Deanna

Dawson Farm Animals

2009-03-25T09:18:00.005-04:00

Daisy

Leon

Star, Leon and Chicken (that's what we call her)

Star and Leon- BFF

Asher playing with Star

I will post pictures of our pony, Molly, soon.

Something is Wrong with this picture!

2009-03-17T11:05:00.003-04:00

Our goat, Star, got herself stuck in the bunny cage and our bunny, Leon, came by to mock her. What is really funny and sort of weird is that Leon and Star are best friends. They spend lots of time together playing, they eat together and even sleep in the same stall at night. I really need to get it on video! You would not believe how often I go outside and find that I am being followed by our chicken, dog, goat, bunny and pony. It always makes me laugh at the strange sight. They just enjoy eachothers company. I have yet to get a good picture of it, but I keep trying.

Just a Fun Picture of the Boys

2009-03-17T07:31:00.001-04:00

More Camping Pictures

2009-03-17T07:18:00.003-04:00

Camping with Friends

2009-03-16T08:29:00.003-04:00

We had a great time camping last Thurs., Fri. and Sat. The girls are out of town with their grandma, so it is just the boys and I. I brought the boys to Lithia Springs on Thurs. and then Greg joined us Friday evening. We were camping with the Reysen family, Westra family and another family that I do not know their last name...her name is Barbara and she has 3 beautiful girls...very nice family. None of the husbands were with us until dinner time on Friday. The kids did lots of bike riding and they did some swimming in the VERY shallow springs. The weather was low 80's during the day and high 50's to 60's at night. Bailey was great! He help set up the site, cooked dinner and cleaned up. I didn't even have to ask. He was stepping in for Greg and did a great job. I was so proud and it made a relaxing trip for me...even with 4 kids.
The first morning Bailey got up extra early so that he could make breakfast for us. He made bacon, sausage and eggs. It was all great and even better, I did not have to cook.

More pictures to come!

A few more cute ones...

2009-01-17T23:19:00.003-05:00

He smiled for the camera.

I love this one!

Asher cuddled up with Ana to watch a movie.
We are not sure how much he actually saw.

Just 2 Cute!

2009-01-13T23:03:00.003-05:00

6 weeks already!

Can we help??

2009-01-13T22:15:00.004-05:00

Everyone wants to be a part of building the tree house; unfortunately, until the foundation is built, there is not too much that little hands can take part in. Though that does not stop them. They enjoy just playing with the tools!

Cecilia hammering some nails into scrap wood.

Asher is attempting to hammer a bolt into the wood.

Working as a team!

Notice the bolt going into the deck. Cecilia and Asher were working hard!

Ana just had fun playing while her sister and brother "tried" to help build.

Tree House Time

2009-01-04T22:50:00.002-05:00

We have been wanting to build a tree house since we moved into this house. We are excited to finally be making out dream a reality. This is a Christmas gift to the kids (and us)! I will post the progress as we go.

We will have the help of Greg's mom and my mom. I am sure that the help will be needed and very much appreciated!

The tools are taken out, the wood is bought (for stage one and two), so now it is time to get started.

It's a start to some very elaborate plans. In the end we are hoping to have 3 levels, swings and a slide coming off of it, some secret doors, a rock climbing wall, a zip line and a rope bridge to another tree house. That is the plan, but as we know, plans change, so we are expecting it to look totally different in the end.