To blog or not to blog....

November 2009

january 1, 2009 (1 year)

january 1, 2008

I started this blog back in December of 2006 as a way to document and share our lives with our family and friends--both near and far. It seems that I haven't been doing a lot of blogging lately and I guess one might blame that on the fact that I am a busy mom of a (soon to be) 2 year old or the fact that I work about 60 hours a week, but honestly, I think I got a little burned out...which is hard for me to admit. I don't like to quit on things. When I start something, I like to see it through. I am sure that the folks who used to follow our blog have long since given up seeing as how our last post was October. Three months and nothing, zip, zilch, nada--yup, blogger burn out, for sure. Does this post mean that I have the itch back again?? Do I want to keep documenting our lives for our family and friends--near and far--through a blog? Afterall, there is facebook-LOL!

(thinking....)

(still thinking....)

Okay...so here it is. I have never been one for resolutions--though we could use some around here especially in the area of excercise--but as I revisit the many posts of the last 3 years, I am so overwhelmed at all that we have, all that we do and have done, and all the memories forever cemented in this blog. Come to think about it, I didn't do a baby book for Logan--I journaled a bit from October to his homecoming, but from then on, EVERYTHING was documented here...on this blog!! Maybe my burn out came from having the same audience? Maybe my audience needs adjusting--afterall, someday Logan will be reading this story...his story, so how can I quit now, right?

The other day, Chad and I began talking about some goals we have for our family for this year--saving money, paying off a few bills, cooking together (don't laugh)--so, a goal of mine will be to continue to blog. There I said it. The Hoene Heaven blog will go on, but I think an audience adjustment is needed. Now, just because I am changing my audience to a 2-year old doesn't mean others won't be able to read to learn about what is happening in our lives. There are so many people out there both near and far who love us and want to know what is happening in our lives...but,

from now on, the person I will be writing to is my son. And someday, when he is ready, we will read all about how our family of 3 came to be and how God so richly blessed our lives. Yes, I am feeling not so burned out already!!

Logan,

In a little over an hour, you will be two years old. Holy cow! TWO!! T-W-O and mommy is so thankful to be your mommy! Though the last few months have been challenging--who knew toddlerhood could be so FUN--I know that God created me to be your mommy. And I thank him each day for that. You had fun tonight playing at Holly's house. We played trains and with the balls. Of course around 8:30 you began to yawn--you have always been such a great sleeper so daddy packed us up and we walked home (from next door). You have been sound asleep for a while now. Our nightly routine of a bit of milk, climbing the stairs and mommy rocking you while we say our prayers is just about as close to heaven as I can imagine. We say prayers and you name off all of the people you want Jesus to bless--Nana, Grandaddy, Mimi, Papa, Papa Hoene, Gran, Annie, all our cousins and aunts and uncles and neighbors. You can imagine how long our prayers tend to be...but I wouldn't miss that time for ANYTHING. Tomorrow is family day and then Sat. is your birthday party--nothing as BIG as last year's shin-dig--family for some pizza, wings and cake--a Handy Manny cake of course. Mommy will post some pictures here after the party. My son, I love you! Happy Birthday, sweet boy!!

Mommy

Fall is Here!

Last week, during Fall Break, we went to Gatlinburg with Nana and Grandaddy. We had so much fun--the weather was GREAT--in the 80's and we even saw a real bear on the property across from our balcony. Hope you enjoy the pictures and are enjoying the changing colors...

Enjoy!

So much funnnn!!!!

Logan is so funny when he says his name because he leaves off the "L" sound. So, it comes out "ogan!" What a GREAT kid!! He is such a blast and amazes us each day with his words and what he does. We are truly blessed!!!!!

"I YUV U!"

Logan is saying the sweetest phrase ANY parent can ever hear...enjoy this video. BTW--Logan was getting ready for bath time--he did have shorts on, though you can't tell from this video :-

S~

Hello there...

How cute am I?
Mommy and Daddy

Me and Mommy

I LOVE yogurt!!! And it LOVES me!

At the park with my cousins

Daddy and me--Cammo Boys

Aunt Diane, cousins Misty and Raime

Man--I love this thing!

Hard to reach the pedal...my legs are too short :-)

Yikes...I am sure no one will be reading this because you have all stopped checking the blog because of the length between posts. No excuses...it is what it is. Life--busy, hectic, amazing, wonderful, tiring...all of the above. Thankfully, life is busy and we are so blessed to have places to go and people to meet and see. Isn't that what life is all about. I used to have an aerobics instructor (long ago, when I had the motivation to excercise) that said, and I quote "Stop complaining...you can sleep when you are dead." I am sure she meant that life is too short to sit on the couch updating your blog each night--play with your son, take a walk around the neighborhood, go swimming in the freezing cold water. She meant--Enjoy each moment of each day, because no one knows when that moment might be your last. Hmmm...didn't mean to get all dark...sorry!

Life is grand at Hoene Heaven!!

Special moments from Summer 2009 (as told by Logan):

1. Daddy had a birthday--we went out to eat with our family. Daddy and I also went out to the farm for a birthday party with Papa Hoene, Uncle Todd, and cousin Blake. All the Hoene boys have birthday's in July (except me--January)

2. We visited Aunt Becky, Uncle Don, Misty Jo, Dane, Roy and Ramie and Grandma Hoene over the 4th of July holiday weekend. Lots of family came in to celebrate the 4th as well as an early birthday for Uncle Don. Aunt Diane and Uncle Paul came all the way from Florida!!

3. Daddy has been doing ALOT of pressure washing and mommy has been editing ALOT of pictures. Mommy also got a new job. She is the new Assistant Principal at a local school. Whoo hoo!! Go mommy!!

4. I have been swimming some at my Nana's house. She has a great pool!!

5. Had my 18 month check up--all is good and I am growing fast and right on track. Mommy and Daddy think I am ahead of the curve because I talk so much--repeating everything they say. They are so funny to listen to when they think I don't understand :-)

That is about it for now...enjoy some new pictures. Daddy got mommy a new camera for an early birthday present because mommy lost the other camera. I think it takes really good pictures.

Until next time...

Logan (and mommy)

Father's Day FUNNN!!

Logan LOVES to ride the lawn mower with his daddy.  He always says "Wide" which in Logan language means "RIDE".  So CUTE!!

Actually this picture was taken on my dad's birthday, June 1.  No matter--A Father's Love does really last Forever!  Love you Dad!!

The Hoene's hope all of you had a wonderful Father's day!  We did!  It was busy with cookouts and church services but overall, it was a great weekend!  It is hard to believe that July 4 is right around the corner...summer--S L O W Down!!

Until next time~

S~

Big Boy Hair Cut!!

"I don't like this chair!!"

This sucker helps ALOT!

...and daddy, too!

Tickles...

All smiles with my new "Big Boy" haircut!

Today was a big day for Logan! His first haircut! Thankfully, Chad's sister, Alicia was gracious enough to cut Logan's hair for us. When Logan was first born, I wondered if he would ever have enough hair to even cut--well, just in the last few months, his hair has really begun to GROW!! Especially over his ears and along his neck. So...we made the trip to GENESIS Salon for the BIG Event!!

Thank you Aunt Alicia!!

Today is another reminder of how fast Logan is growing up right before our eyes. He is so much fun and is learning each day! We are so very blessed!

S~

17

Lovin' Life!!

Logan's First Baseball Game--The Louisville Bats

Looks like a long way down...

Neighbor "H" wanting to play...Logan LOVEs her!!

Ridin' the Lawn Mower with Daddy--mommy was nervous.  Of course he loved it!!  GREAT~

Here I go again...

Happy Birthday, Dad!  You are THE BEST and we love you!!

Lovely Lillies

Can you say--uh-oh?  Bath time!!

seventeen months...ago...Logan...came...into...this...world!!  And nothing has been the same since--it is ALL so much BETTER!!  Even everyday things like hearing the "choo, choo" train or feeling the spring breeze from swinging (or wing as Logan says) are a GAZILLION times better.  It is like seeing the world for the first time!  

So much learning going on in the Hoene home--

~learning to take the steps one at a time

~learning to whisper especially when Savannah is napping in the chair

~learning to jump (we haven't made it off the toes yet)

~learning to put a name with EVERYTHING!  "Car, tree, dirt, star, uh-uh, uh-oh, oh-no, bubbles--yep, that is right, bubbles--ride (as in lawn mower), and wing (swing).  There are tons more!!

~learning to say our prayers (ABC, 123, Thank you God for blessing me--then we bless everyone--kind of like Roll Call at a family reunion, if you can imagine that :-)

~LEARNING IS FUNNNNN!!!~

This time is so special.  I just want to capture each moment and keep it forever.  The Hoene's have done some celebrating of late--Memorial day was great!  Thanks to the neighbors for having us over for some great food and fun.  Last night we celebrated Papa's birthday with a cookout at the house.  The kids played in the sprinkler, small pool and on the swing.  Ah...summer fun!!  My wonderful hubby took some time over the long weekend and landscaped the front of the house--LOVE IT!!  And Logan loved the dirt and especially when daddy and mommy water the flowers with the hose.  I think we have a "water bug" on our hands.  Maybe that is why he screams when bath time is over!!!!

June is here and we are looking forward to slowing down a bit this summer to be in the moment with our family and enjoy each-and-EVERY-moment.  We wish the same for you...

Until next time...

S~

No laptop!

Sweet Savannah Leigh

My beautiful mom!!

Sweet boy...

That's right!  Our laptop, where I do the blogging, is on the fritz once again--man, I sure do hate SPYware.  Who is the world has the time to create such destructive little virus'?  Whoever they are, they must not have any children!

Anyhow, we have had a wonderful May--if only the rain would ease up a bit.  I am all for blooming flowers and green grass, but I am thinking we might need an Ark or two if we get anymore of the wet stuff!  Derby and Mother's Day were both fabulous!  We spent time with family and friends and Logan had a ball.  He is growing and learning so much each and every day.  What else is happening in The Hoene's home?  Well, I am getting ready to finish my thirteenth year in public education--WOW--has it really been that long?  Hey--I can retire in 14 more years!  Whoo hoo!!  Chad and I are both working really hard on our family businesses.  He with C and S Pressure Wash and me with Images by Staci.  I am looking forward to my first Portrait Party coming soon!!  Logan went to his first BATS game and loved it!  "Ball--Ball--Ball"  He is definetely going to be some kind of ball player.  

Well--I just wanted to reasure everyone that we are still here, despite the length of time between blog posts.  Once the laptop gets fixed and school lets out, the posts will be much more frequent (I hope).  

Until next time...

S~

Very BUSY April!

Happy Birthday Aunt Carrie!!

Man...where did April go? It seems like we just enjoyed our Spring Break and now we are celebrating Derby around the Hoene house! What a great few weeks we have had in our family from celebrating my sister's 30th birthday, to Savannah's first soccer game, to cheering Carrie on in the mini-marathon. Not to mention all of the milestones Logan is hitting every day! He continues to talk and communicate with us--in fact, he LOVES to say the names of all the family members--"mama, dada, papa, nana, mimi" over and over. We are working on grandaddy and the aunts--Carrie and Alicia are a bit more difficult. Logan loves to dance--if he hears any music he just dances and twirls in a circle--so cute! I will work on getting some video of his new words and him dancing to the beat of his favorite song. In the meantime--happy Spring everyone! We are so blessed!!

Until next time...

S~

A year...

has passed since Logan's adoption became official--A YEAR! He continues to grow and thrive each and every day. I find myself reflecting on this last year and a half and can't help but smile...so much to smile about.

Have a fabulous week everyone!

~Staci

Link to last year's post: Enjoy!
http://hoeneheaven.blogspot.com/2008/04/big-day.html

Easter...better late than never!

Beautiful--but windy!

~Savannah and Logan at Church

~Cheesin'for the camera

Yes, the Easter Bunny did come to the Hoene's house! He was a sneaky little bunny and brought Logan some sweet treats and a new ball (thanks Nana!). We had a great day! Church was AMAZING! A New Creation! Then we went to O'Charley's for brunch--just the 3 of us and then home and naps for everyone. Because it was the end of Spring Break and we still hadn't unpacked out suitcases, we didn't get to dye eggs this year. Hopefully next year we will be able to do that with Logan. I know he will LOVE it!!

We hope you all had a wonderful Easter and somewhere amidst the egg hunting, chocolate bunnies and jelly beans, you took time to remember the deeper meaning of this past Sunday. If you have never seen this video, take about 4 minutes...it is worth it and really speaks to the story behind Easter and The Resurrection of Christ.

Click the link for the video from YouTube!

It's Friday, but Sunday is comin'!!

Sunday is HERE~

~Staci

Spring Break 2009

~surfer dude

~happy family...

~cousins

~beauty...

So blessed...
Some folks like to go camping. Some like to watch Nascar. Some people even like to go shopping. The Hoene's...what do we like to do? Travel. If we have some time off and a bit of $$ saved, you can bet you will find us near a beach or pool. We LOVE it and apparently, so does Logan!

S~