California

WE DROVE TO SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA TO HAVE EASTER WITH FAMILY. HAD A FUN DAY AT LEGO LAND BESIDES GETTING RAINED ON THAN WENT TO SEALIFE AQUARIUM. NEXT DAY PLAYED AT THE BEACH WHEN SOME TO REMAIN UNNAMED DIDNT SEE A REASON TO WEAR A SWIM SUIT. I WAS A QUICK TRIP 1500 MILES IN 4 DAYS BUT ALL HAD A GOOD TIME.

IM DONE

I am hereby officially tendering my resignation as an adult. I have decided I would like to accept the responsibilities of an 8 year-old again. I want to go to McDonald's and think that it's a four star restaurant.
I want to sail sticks across a fresh mud puddle and make a sidewalk with rocks. I want to think M&Ms are better than money because you can eat them.
I want to lie under a big oak tree and run a lemonade stand with my friends on a hot summer's day. I want to return to a time when life was simple, when all you knew were colors, multiplication tables, and nursery rhymes, but that didn't bother you, because you didn't know what you didn't know and you didn't care. All you knew was to be happy because you were blissfully unaware of all the things that should make you worried or upset.
I want to think the world is fair. That everyone is honest and good. I want to believe that anything is possible. I want to be oblivious to the complexities of life and be overly excited by the little things again.
I want to live simple again. I don't want my day to consist of computer crashes, mountains of paperwork, depressing news, how to survive more days in the month than there is money in the bank, doctor bills, gossip, illness, and loss of loved ones.
I want to believe in the power of smiles, hugs, a kind word, truth, justice, peace, dreams, the imagination, mankind, and making angels in the snow.
So . . . here's my checkbook and my car keys, my credit card bills and my 401K statements. I am officially resigning from adulthood.

New Year

Oh last year had so many up and downs but we all survived. We all learned to use a lathe. My youngest got a new kitten. My husband got his lab assistant certificate but cant find a job. My oldest son spent 2 days in ICU and 3 more days in the hospital, but is fine now. Holidays were quiet, but the time together nice.


For the new year I think we will take it one day at a time, not worry about yesterday or obsess about tomorrow, we will be happy in all God has given us, try not to change things out of our control, correct things we can, improve our minds by learning something new, be courteous of others, do things positive to improve our health, take responsibility for our own actions and do what is right. Pray God just gives us what we need to get through

Happy New Year to all

Proclamation

By Abe Lincon
It is the duty of nations as well as of men to own their dependence upon the overruling power of God, to confess their sins and transgressions in humble sorrow, yet with assured hope that genuine repentance will lead to mercy and pardon: and to recognize the sublime truth, announced in the Holy scriptures and prove by all history, that those nations are blessed whose god is the Lord.

We know that by His divine law, nations, like individuals, are subjected to punishments and chastisements in this world. May we not justly fear that the awful calamity of civil war which now desolates the land may be a punishment inflicted upon us for our presumptuous sins, to the needful end of our national reformation as a whole people?

We have been the recipients of the choicest bounties of heaven; we have been preserved these many years in peace and prosperity; we hve grown in numbers, wealth and power as no other nation has ever grown.

But we have forgotten God. We have forgotten the gracious hand which preserved us in peace and multiplied and enriched and stregthened us, and we have vainly imagined, in the deceitfulness of our hearts, that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own. Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God that has made us. March 1863

It has seemed to me fit and proper that God should besolemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged, as with one heart and one voice by the whole American People. I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States , an also those who are at sea and those who are sojourninhg in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November as a day of Thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens. October 1863

Project Car--Hot August Nights Here We Come

Back in the 80's I had a 1966 Mustang coupe-- white with original red pony seats. It was so sweet until my step dad rolled it. Since then I had been looking for another one.

This one just about fell in our lap. We have a 14 year old who needs to learn how to work on a car what a better project could he have.

At this time we can drive it around town-- it does need muffler work. Lexie has driven it and is totally not impressed. Carson thinks this is the icing on the cake. Me I remember why now they are called muscle cars-- no power steering.

Carson has the insides almost totally torn out, once we get new seats (right now you need a milk crate behind one of them to see over the dash) we will start detailing the inside, later add some paint and more power and sweet have an awsome muscle car to drive around.

learning something new

Husband and I learned to use a lathe for wood working

Walleys

We spent a week out in Genoa at Walleys Hot Springs- a day into it and the kids were bored, they had a tv, Wii, cell phones and Ipods along with board games and cards but no computer so they were bored. So we went hiking up along Tahoe Ridge

swimming at Lake Tahoe

and went into Reno to see some of the Hot August Night cars

Next year I think we will leave the kids home-- I dont remember acting like that when I was a kid on vacation

Day at the lake

We had just got our skis tuned up and decided to take them out to Lahonton lake while there is still enough water, to see how well they ran. Lexie and her dog took the larger ski out and had a great run

Tim was too scared to ride with me -- He says I'm too crazy on them, I've never fallen off or flipped them even when the waves are a couple feet high-- No since of adventure Tim

OUR ANNIVERSARY

Another adventure for the Shoopman family





Every year for our anniversary Tim and I take a weekend trip away and buy a coffee cup. This year we decided we wanted to go to Heavenly to do some hiking, photography and go down the zip line. Well this weekend sure did not turn out as we had planned. We lost our front breaks going over the hill, my camera lense was messed up and Heavenly will not be open until Memorial weekend. Luckly anywhere we are together things are good.

I booked this bed and breakfast online. When we got there it was nothing like I thought. I had not planned to stay at a little strip motel, which is what I saw at first glance. It ended up being absolutely wonderful. Our room was so nicely decorated in a rustic theme, ( each of the rooms is decorated differently). We had a fireplace, got breakfast in the morning, had a hydro massage each day, and private time in the hot tub with bottomless wine all part of the package. They treated us like we were the only ones there.

The first day we had to take care of the truck for obvious reasons. While it was being repaired we went to breakfast and took a hike through a meadow towards Lake Tahoe. Got a good photo of a very big coyote in the meadow. After we drove up to Heavenly, big disappointment to find it was closed-we were really looking forward to that zip line! Ended up taking the resorts bikes down to the lake and walking along the beach. It was beautiful out.

Well when things dont go as planned gotta improvise and all turned out well--yes we did get our coffee cup.

OHIO TO SEE GRANDMA

The end of February my mom and I flew to Ohio to see my grandma. It was cold. I'm an active person so sitting around in the house was difficult, and walking by her home was not recommended. Stationary bike it was, I did talk mom and grandma to walking at the mall one day. I also spent time with my aunt she had found my dads baby book and school books during her move. We spent the day going through those and other photos she had --That was fun. The best place we went was to the Amish country, The life style is so different from what we are used to. They travel by horse and buggy and dont use electricity in their homes.--I was a little unhappy because the small farms and stores are more commerial since the last time I had visited there. I didn't go there to see and get things made in China, I like the handmade furniture and quilts.