Sunday Pics

Hello!! Just some random pics from Sunday. The kids were dressed for church and they looked too cute together. SO, of course, I had to get out the camera. Li'l guy's sweater was a Christmas gift from Grammy and Pappy and he loved it. He wouldn't even take it off for lunch or dinner (so we really had to watch him to make sure he didn't get his sleeves in anything. . .I think he may have picked up some mashed potatoes though). After church it was time for the Bear's game, so I checked to see if Abby's Urlacher jersey still fit (it's a 12 month and it fit her last February, so I wasn't too optimistic). BUT, alas, it did fit (tightly, but we must show off the belly anyway). She didn't cheer too long since she fell asleep by the middle of the 1st quarter, but I'm sure she was cheering them on in her sleep. :)
Here's a couple pics of Abby and Caleb showing off on the rocking horse. Abby gets stuck and can't get off the horse, so li'l Caleb will come over and lift her left for her (such a nice, helpful brother).

Then, here is Daddy's attempt at making Abby a Lion's fan. . .Mommy says no lions, no tigers, just Bears. I think I'll be overruled though. . .
Abby likes to climb up into Caleb's "Cars" chair (sometimes she'll get stuck and we'll have to come bail her out) and here she is showing off.Abby likes to be on Daddy's shoulders. . .it's pretty high up there. Then again, when Uncle Jon and Aunt Rhonda have their baby, he/she will probably have nosebleeds when Jon puts him/her on his shoulders. This isn't from Sunday, but I thought I'd show how li'l guy likes to ride the fire truck. Too bad Pappy isn't a fireman still so he could ride on a REAL fire truck.

Christmas - Part 3 "The Final Frontier"

The third and final Christmas stop was in Walnut, IL at Grandma and Papa Worgess' house. Yet more gifts and great time with family greeted us there. We arrived early Christmas afternoon, and Papa promptly proceeded to tell li'l Caleb that the biggest box under the tree was for him (great. . .and how are we supposed to fit THAT in the van??). :) But, the kids had to wait until later that night to open their goodies. Everyone but Pete and Hilary were able to make it, so it was quite the lively bunch! After dinner, it was finally time to get started. . .

Here's a picture of li'l Caleb opening his big box. . .it was a huge fire engine! He loves it!!! The ladder goes up and down and you can turn the lights and siren on too (actually, funny story, when we packed up to leave, this thing fit just perfectly in the very back on the van, but it shifted slightly and something kept hitting the "lights and siren" buttons, so Caleb was seeing these flashing red lights in his rear-view mirror. . .he kept thinking he was being pulled over. Ha ha ha!) That made me laugh. Fortunately, it has an on/off switch so we were able to not have to hear the screeching siren the next 5 hours. There was also a fireman's badge which li'l guy proudly displayed! :)

Abby's favorite present that night was her Dora chair. It's a foam chair, but she kept trying to make it a recliner. She'd sit down then lean way back and start rocking. Cracked us up. At one point, she had pulled it close to the couch and was trying to put her feet up on the couch too. She's so funny! She was definitely quite relaxed!

I guess I didn't have as many pics as I thought. . .there was quite a bit of action all night, so we were probably too distracted to take pictures. Thanks to Grandma and Papa, Uncle Pete and Aunt Hilary, Uncle Jon and Aunt Rhonda, and Ron, Joanne, and the girls for the great presents and the nice time with family! Hopefully Pete and Hilary will be able to join us next year.

Well, I have to say, I'm sort of glad to be done with Christmas. The hustle and bustle of the holidays can become overwhelming, and while I don't feel that I was overwhelmed, it's just nice to be done. And. . .now that we've celebrated the birth of our Saviour, we can anxiously await the celebration that HE IS RISEN! (3 months, and counting. . .)

Christmas - Part 2

On Saturday morning, we loaded up the van and headed north to see our families. First stop: Plainfield, IL at Chris and Em's house. We spent some great time with my aunt, uncle, and cousins that we only see once or twice a year, and we also made the trek Sunday morning over to Valpo, IN for the annual Ruge breakfast. Monday, Christmas Eve came and it was time for more presents! Boy were the kids happy! :)


Here's a picture of Abby showing off her new purse/wristlet from GG (great-grammy) and Gran-Pappy. She LOVED it! (ah. . .a child after my own heart!) It's a little hard to tell, but it's a Hello Kitty, and GG even put a dollar in it for her, and some M&Ms. . .what more does a girl need??? Abby just kept walking around with her little purse (and yes, she's carrying cheese. . .that came from the tub full of food Auntie Em and Uncle Chris gave her and li'l guy. . .yes another HUGE hit!) and was happy as a clam.

Then there's a picture of li'l guy drooling over his new train table from Grammy and Pappy. He wanted to set it up right away, but we had to get it home somehow, and a fully assembled train table would NOT have fit in the van (ok, so I still don't like the "minivan" but I do like the convenience. . .). He got a couple train sets this year, so added to the one he already had, we'll put that train table to good use! He and Pappy spent the rest of the evening laying on the floor playing with the trains and the "crash" cars. It's difficult to say who had more fun. . .li'l guy or Pappy. :)

We don't have a ton of pictures of Christmas on the Ruge side since our camera ran out of juice (oops). But, I know my parents took a lot of great pictures so hopefully I'll get some of those (hint, hint, please send me some??). Here's a cute picture of Abby. . .Grammy and Pappy got her the Minnie Mouse ears, but she thought she'd rather chew on them than wear them. I think we got a cute picture of Grammy wearing them with their camera though. . .Marissa had gotten Abby a doll and stroller, and she looked too cute pushing it around the kitchen (actually, she preferred to push "Snicks" her new golden-doodle stuffed animal). Of course, that was AFTER our camera went to sleep.

Thank you so much to Grammy, Pappy, Uncle Chris and Auntie Em, GG and Gran-Pappy, and Kerry, Rich and Marissa for all the wonderful gifts! I wish I had more pics to share. . .but, there are more for Christmas part 3!

Christmas - Part 1

Well, it's been a flurry of a few days, and the illness going through the family put a slight damper on things, but all in all it was a wonderful Christmas!! It started with just the four of us on Friday night and the kids opened their presents from Caleb and me. Here's picture of the li'l guy trying to show mommy what he opened. . .he didn't quite get that he was supposed to turn it around first (and not hold it in front of his head). :) Then here's Abby with her new doll "Abby Cadabby" from Sesame Street. For those of you that are not big Sesame Street fans, she is the best friend of Elmo (fitting, don't you think??). :) Yes, I still have all my Elmos. . .
Obviously there were some other gifts, but there will be many more pics to come in part 2 and part 3. . .stay tuned.

The Christmas Letter

Merry Christmas!!

Instead of coming up with a Christmas letter to be printed, folded, added to the Christmas card, stuffed and sent, this year we decided to do the "Christmas Blog" instead. This year has been soooooo full of blessings, blessings in disguise, and things we just weren't (or still aren't) sure what to call. All in all, it was yet another full year in the life of the Worgi (that's plural for Worgess. . .too many "sssssss" otherwise).

There have been job issues, health issues (thankfully minor, just gross), emotional stress, and yet on the back end, everything seems so small. . .just a blip on the screen of 2007. As I look back over the year as a whole, there is soooooooooooo much to report, yet so little at the same time. We are still waiting on God for direction with Caleb's job, but He has been opening doors for Caleb/us little by little and we are trusting that one of these days, the door that opens will give more of a secure glimpse. We rest in the assurance that "my God will meet all [our] needs according to his riches in Christ Jesus." (Phil 4:19) We rest in that assurance because not only does God's word say he will, but WE'VE SO GREATLY experienced this in 2007!

So where are we today?? Well, for starters, Caleb is working on a contractor-type basis for the church we've been attending in Greenwood (about 25 miles from Shelbyville). He is helping them strengthen the small group ministry and working to train more leaders for more groups. Caleb is really enjoying the work and the opportunity provided him (see, just one way my God is meeting our needs. . .). Of course, one of the perks is that he drives right past a Starbucks on the way to work every morning (ugh!). Caleb also continues to be a wonderful father and a great help to me! Yes, the kids like him better, and he doesn't even have to bribe them (yet).

Little Caleb is getting to be more of a little man every day and he makes us laugh all the time. Earlier this year we were driving somewhere and he looked out the window and said, "that's daddy's coffee." Yes, we were driving by Starbucks. It has gone downhill from there. He knows Daddy's drink (sometimes better than the employees. . ."Campana Daddy!") and that he needs three raw sugars and a stir stick. I think we may have a future coffee snob on our hands (ugh, not another one!). He LOVES to sing, and he loves Michigan just like his daddy (grrr. . .Caleb even taught the li'l guy to say booooo when I said Wisconsin). He also has a great memory (yet another trait from his father) and still will say "There's Pappy!" everytime we see a Culver's (even though my parents sold the stores almost a year and a half ago).
Abby, Abbers, Abmaster, Chubb-a-gail, whatever we feel like calling her that day, is also growing up so fast!! She's walking all over the place now (pretty quickly too) but hasn't quite shaved off any of her belly yet. Caleb bought her a Michigan cheerleader outfit this fall, and after putting it on her, he wondered aloud if maybe we should have gotten her a football jersey instead. :) But she really did look very cute as a cheerleader. She also loves to climb into li'l Caleb's bed and read books (maybe she'll get ONE of mommy's traits??).

As for me, I'm still working for USG from home (yet another one of those blessings!). I travel up to Chicago every once in a while for meetings or just to have some face time in the office, but nothing too outrageous. It's nice to go up and be in the office for a day or two, get my fill of the city (and traffic. . .blick, don't miss that), and then head home again. Outside of work, I haven't had a ton of time to do much crafty stuff, but hey, I'm just not at the right stage right now. Until the kids are older and able to play more on their own (or even just stay out of mommy's craft supplies) I will have to keep my creative juices a little more holed up and just enjoy the time playing trains with li'l guy and dancing with baby girl.

Since 2007 was "the year of no babies" as I like to call it, I was actually able to use vacation as vacation!! No maternity leave necessary!! So, we spent a week in Floriday with my family and then Caleb and I were able to take a mini vacation on our own this fall. We went to the Biltmore Estate in North Carolina. . .AMAZING and HIGHLY recommended if you are looking for somewhere scenic! We had a wonderful time: went to the NASCAR race in Charlotte, then stayed at the Inn on Biltmore Estate for two nights and went horseback riding (yes, Caleb was on a horse!), took a bunch of little tours, and even took a Segway tour (very cool!!). Check out our nice "tourist" picture. . .yeah, we looked like twins/dorks, but that's ok. . .we were warm!

It was another whirlwind year for us, and while there are still so many unknowns about the future, we are looking forward to whatever may come our way!! We hope and pray that everyone would have a VERY Merry Christmas and enjoy spending time with their family, friends, and loved ones! I know we will!!!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Caleb, Shelli, Caleb, and Abby

Moose With a Cowlick

So, I'm in Chicago for a couple days in the office. . .decided to do a little Christmas shopping last night and this is what greeted me at the top of an escalator in Macy's. . . Isn't he cute!?!?!?! Daddy, I think I want this for Christmas. :) He's only $1,200! (Yes, Dad, even across all these miles I can feel you giving me "the look.") They had a bunch of these animals and I just had to take a pic of the Moose. He reminds me of the Moosetunes that li'l Caleb likes to watch ("I'm a moose with a cowlick, on my head. . .")

Sorry, no pics of the kids right now. . .maybe when I get home later.

First Christmas Present - early

When the kids woke up from their naps on Wednesday, Grammy had their first Christmas present wrapped and ready to be opened. Here are the kids opening the GREAT present from Uncle Rick and Aunt Peggy (who live in "abraska" as li'l Caleb says).

This is a "Smart Cycle" and it is basically a video game that requires you to pedal in order to move forward. The bike itself is hooked right up to the TV. It's really pretty cute, and the kids both LOVE it! Caleb is still trying to learn how to pedal so he doesn't quite get this game yet, but he'll get there. He definitely liked the buttons though. There's even a button that you can take pictures of the screen. . .he'll press the button then say "I took a picture!" :)

Even Abby wanted in on the action. She can't quite reach the pedals yet, but she also REALLY likes the buttons. I thought this picture was really cute and actually looks like she was watching the video game! Thanks so much Uncle Rick and Aunt Peggy for the great gift!!! It was hard to keep the kids away from it while we were putting it together. :)

Mr. Frostyhead?

Ok, so last night was the first snowfall of the season here (yes, we are only about 3 hours south of Chicago, but our weather really is quite different sometimes) and the kids got to go outside and play in the snow with Grammy and Pappy. Here's Miss Abby, the Pink Abominable (sp?) Snowgirl. . .ready for the cold! She loved it! The poor thing was about as bundled as the kid from "The Christmas Story" minus the scarf.







Then came li'l lumberjack Caleb. His earflap hat still fits from last year (yeah!!) and he also had a great time out in the snow. He was so excited to put his snowboots and snowpants on. He didn't do much though. . .just walked around the backyard. Earlier in the morning he had been standing at the sliding glass door and Caleb threw a snowball at the window (gently of course) so when li'l Caleb was outside he thought he needed to try to throw a snowball too. . .didn't work so well.






Abby enjoyed some fun in the sled. Basically, she just sat there like the queen while her minions (aka Grammy and Pappy) pulled her around the yard. Yup, she loved every minute of it. At one point she was sticking her tongue out trying to catch some snowflakes. Too cute.




And then, there was Mr. Frostyhead. Grammy and li'l guy decided to build a little snowman for the table on the back porch. Since no coal or carrot were to be found, we improvised (thanks to Grammy's creative thinking) and used Mr. Potatohead parts instead! :) This is the modern-era snowman. Unfortunately, he didn't last too long because li'l guy got a little toooooo excited and knocked him over. At least we had one good picture first.

We're in the 21st Century!!

Well, I finally did it. . .I've launched us into the 21st century and started a blog. Will we do anything with it?? Who knows! But, it's started at least.

Welcome to the Worgess Family page! If you follow this, I'm sure you will see TONS of pictures of the kids and loads of fun stuff about the kids because, let's face it, once you have children, no one really cares much about the adults (it's ok, we're totally fine with that!) :) I'm sure there will be tidbits here and there about me and Caleb as well, but you might have to hunt for them. Hmmm. . .maybe I'll post some totally random thoughts here and there (wait, I do that normally in regular speech. . .). And speaking of random, here's the quote of the day from li'l Caleb. . ."Put your shoes on, Potato!" (said while playing with his Mr. Potato-Head). Kids say the darndest things!

Ok, so while I learn how to use this thing, the blog will be fairly sparse. . .but with my wonderful husband's assistance, I'm sure I'll figure it out. So, here goes nothing. . .

Pappy and Abby, and Daddy and li'l guy enjoyed the slide at the Children's Museum in Indy.

We finally got out the decorations for Christmas, and now Abby has a new friend. She likes to give Elmo hugs.

Here's a pic of Caleb and Abby before church. . .li'l guy wasn't quite ready yet (although I'm sure he would have loved to go in his Micky Mouse jammies).