SNOW....finally!

We awoke this morning to a blanket of snow. While we have been gripped with the bitter cold, we had not seen any snow this winter. And believe me, Neil as been yearning for it! Well, it finally arrived and since we have the day off, Neil and his sister, Kellie enjoyed some snow fun and sledding.

WOW...It has been a long time!

Gentlemen & Ladies, I really must apologize for the lapse in time from my last post until now. It has been really busy around the Ackerman house. So the best I can do... is RECAP!

THANKSGIVING was very low key. We celebrated a day early just the four of us and they celebrated with Roy's parents on Thursday.

On Friday, we traveled to Indy to visit with more family and root on our Football Tigers. The boys put out a valiant effort and represented Southern Indiana proudly, but we did not make state champs. We all had a great time and Lucas Oil Stadium is amazing!

Autumn in southern Indiana... The color this year was really nice and Neil enjoyed helping with the annual "raking" of the leaves...so he could jump in them. There were a multitude of leaves this year. It seemed as thoug we were raking and mulching for three weeks straight!



CHRISTMAS TIME was very nice and we were so very blessed . Kellie attended the Christmas dance. She looked beautiful and she had a great time. Great dress selection by Aunt Marianne!

In addition, we had a beautiful midnight Christmas service. Christmas Day we enjoyed time with Roy's family and then we celebrated with the Keller's on Friday and Saturday. PARTY, PARTY, PARTY!

2009 The New Year! We celebrated as a family by going to mass New Year's Eve, had our traditional dinner at Turoni's followed by our drive through the Ritzy's Fantasy of Lights Display! Then on New Year's Day, Kellie and Neil were able to spend some fun time with Grandma and Grandpa Keller, while Roy and I drove up to French Lick to enjoy the an overnight at the West Badin Hotel. After a lengthy renovation, it finally opened in May 2007. We both had been dying to go up there and it is truly an amazing place.

WE ARE GOING TO INDY...AGAIN!!!!

Last evening some 1500 Memorial fans braved a VERY COLD evening (between 20-30 degrees) to watch our Tigers beat the current, 2-time state champs of 3A Football, Bishop Chatard! WE are now off to state next weekend and the Ackerman's are very excited! Please enjoy the video recap. Unfortunately, there are not any of a guard gal...she was in the stands cheering....GO TIGERS!!!

Soccer State Continues

The fun and recognition continues...Several video links have been posted. I thought I would attach them so you could enjoy the fun as well. For the final game, our girls were the home team and were wearing white. In the championship game for the boys, they were the guest teama and wore blue!

Here is the link for the girls! And the link for the boys!

I hope you enjoy them!

Neil's Special Guest

On Friday, October 31st, Neil's third grade class put on a very cute Halloween Play. At the conclusion, they realized that they had had a very special guest...DON MATTINGLY. The kids all had fun meeting with him and he signed autographs for each of them. What a great Halloween surprise!

October was busy ....

The Ackerman's have not posted in a while as we have been very busy with family fun, school activities, Halloween and high school boys & girls state soccer finals. Just see how much fun we had in the past four weeks!

Not 1, but 2 STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS!

Memorial Boys and Girls Soccer teams won the state championships on November 1st. Kellie and I were so very glad that we were able to get a chance to see all of the games. They were extremely close and well played games that went into overtime, PK's and suddent death! But after all of the excitement and hard work, our boys and girls came out on TOP!!! WAY TO GO TIGERS...WE ARE VERY PROUD OF YOU!!

Happy Halloween, Darth Vader!

Halloween for Neil was full of so many great things. First, he had a wonderful Halloween play performance at his school. After his performance, he got a real surprise...Don Mattingly visited his class and gave each student an autograph!

Next, he had trick-or-treating. Neil has become fascinated with Star Wars in the past few months and so he chose to be Darth Vader for Halloween this year. He had a great time going trick or treating with Grandpa Keller.

Fun filled Saturday

Last Saturday, Neil had a great deal of fun! We went to the Evansville Art Museum to learn about Day of Dead in Mexico. They currently have a fabulous exhibit which includes paintings, prints, photos and displays that show the uniqueness and beauty of this wonderful celebration.

After that, we went to a great traveling exhibit about the Civil War in Indiana. It was part of the Indiana History Train that makes stops throughout the state. Neil even got to meet Abraham Lincoln!

Lastly, we finished off the day with pumpkin picking. Neil new exactly what kind of pumpkins he wanted especially for his jack-o-lantern.

Overall, it was a full day, but what a great day!!!

50th Day of School

Tuesday, October 21st marked the 50th day of school for Kellie and me. Memorial decided to have a little fun with it and we could dress in 50's attire. For lunch we had burgers, shakes and sundaes and the played 50's music between passing periods. It was so much fun!

What a LADY!!

On Saturday, October 18th, 2008, a very special lady got married! My sister Marianne had a very special day full of family and celebration. She was so beautiful and has gained a wonderful, caring husband in Eric.

Welcome to our mess...

Roy, the kids and I have been working on our basement remodel with the little, available free time we have. It is the last section to complete in the house and we are eagerly anticipating the TRY to have it completed by the first of the year.

As you can see from this photo, we are still have more to do, but when it is completed it should be a great retreat for teenager, kids and adults alike. We will keep you up to date!

WHAT A GAME!!!!

Yesterday, Memorial was playing Mater Dei in an afteroon game and it was thrilling! It was a very close game. A well played game.It went into overtime. Please enjoy the link with a recap of the game and a quick shot of Kellie performing at half-time! She is in the front. By the way MEMORIAL WON!!!!

FUN FEST 2008

While Kellie and I were at the band competition, Roy and Neil were at our local PBS station (WNIN) for their annual Kids Fest. Neil had great fun visiting with his favorite characters, received free books and he got to meet, Evie the litter dog. She is a beautiful golden labrador retriever that is that spokes-dog to reduce littering and keeping Evansville beautiful.

More Band FUN!

I have not found time to be online due to school obligations, running kids here and there and band competition. Tonight, we finished early, so I am passing on some photos from our recent competitions. The first photo was posted on the internet on Simply Instrumental. I hope you enjoy them as much as I did!

Band Season Has Begun!

Yesterday, Kellie and her peers had their first band compeition in Mt. Vernon, Indiana. It was exciting, nerve-racking, exhilerating and full of FUN! As a parent, it was fullfilling to see them work together and finally get to perform as opposed to just practicing; to see them dressed-up in their uniforms rather than "t-shirts & shorts;" and to be at a venue rather than a parking lot.

I hope to keep you up-to-date on the band's progress through the coming months.

Prayers

Yesterday at mass we were told that Sr. Celeste, our church's bookkeeper and all-around go to gal, was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. When she had a routine trip to the doctor they located a cyst (what they thought was about the size of an egg) and suggested a hysterectomy. She had a full hysterectomy last Thursday...but during that surgery they found a softball size cyst and a fast spreading cancer. PLEASE pray for her recovery as it has not been determine what type of treatment she may need, but it was very shocking for her and for our church family.

This if just a friendly reminder of how important it is to have our annual exams and mamograms. You never know when something like this will show up and it could save our lives!

First Week of School...35 more weeks to go

At the Ackerman's, we now have a freshman in high school! This past week, Kellie, Neil and I started school and we now have one full week completed! Neil started a new school and was thoroughly welcomed and loves his new teacher, Mrs. Woehler. Kellie started high school and also "loves" the new adventure that makes up high school...the extra homework, finding the many classrooms and more importantly, meeting new friends. The start of school was really good. We hope and pray for a continued great school year!

The Last Day of Summer

Today, the kids along with Roy and I enjoy the last of summer break. But what a summer we have had...we were blessed to visit with many family members; we were able to experience and be amazed by the beauty of God's creativity in the form of nature and creatures; we were able to go camping, playing and having family fun; and we were are enjoying the excitement of the Olympics. It has been a wonderful summer for all of us!

The kids and I are ready! We have all of our supplies, new uniforms and are mentally prepared for the new year. Please pray for Kellie, Neil and I as we set sail for a new school year. We each have new challenges: new schools, new teachers and new leaders. May the 2008-2009 school year be a blessing and an intellectual growth for each one of us!

The Unspectacular Quirk Meme

I had never heard of “memes” until I was tagged by sister-in-law, Kelly. So this will be a new experience for me.
The way she explained it is that I tell you 6 "unspectacular quirks" of mine, and then I mention 6 people and they have to list their quirks on their blog. Well, I can send it on to 3 as I only have that many people I know...still building!

As I have never done this before, bear with me….

1. I LOVE Battenberg cake…this is definitely one of those pleasures I truly miss from our time in England. If I could learn how to make this cake properly….ooh the poundage!

2. I am totally a morning person. Unless, you have me doing manual labor I turn into a pumpkin by 9:30 pm…how very sad!

3. AVERAGE…this is what I am labeled when it comes to height…but when your three brother border on or above six foot as well as your sister, it really makes me wonder how I got shorted in the gene pool.

4. My favorite movie is the original “Sabrina.” I love Audrey Hepburn and if I could look and act as elegant…WOW!

5. I am anxious for the beginning of band season. Our daughter, Kellie, will once again be performing with the color guard, but this year she will be adding weaponry…both rifle and saber. I am both excited by the thrill of the competition, but worried about possible injuries she may get in the process.

6. I like it when Roy and I get to take a nice quiet walk. They don’t happen a lot as he is usually working late or we have one or both kids to go to extra curricula’s. It really means a great deal to me.

And here are my friends that I hope will share unspectacular quirks: Jaime, Cami and Angela!