Matt Goes to College

On Wednesday, we took Matt to Wheaton College, where he starts his college career. It is an amazing and kind of awesome step as our youngest heads out the door.

We packed up on Wednesday morning and headed north for the 3 hour drive to the campus, 20 miles straight west of Chicago’s Loop. We were there a day before most freshmen arrived because he won an ROTC scholarship and ROTC activities started Wednesday night and most of the day Thursday.

When we arrived, four current ROTC cadets met us in his dorm lobby and helped get his stuff moved to the 5th floor. That took about 10 minutes!! Matt assured Gretchen and me he could get organized, so he did more paperwork, went to get his ID photo taken and we met up again at 6pm. He started connecting with his RA and finding his way around.

The ROTC group had a pizza dinner for the new cadets and their parents. There were about 85 or so total for this event. We heard from the cadet commander (here with Gretchen), as well as several cadets. We also saw a well-done DVD of the 2006-07 ROTC activities. That was quite educational and useful for us. After the dinner and presentations, the current cadets grabbed the new cadets and took them to an ice-cream place near campus. Matt seemed to enjoy all of this and was mostly quite anxious to get started.

So, we said good bye and drove home, getting in around 1am. We felt good about leaving, as Matt is in a place where he can thrive. He’ll connect well there, academically, socially, spiritually…it all fits. He’ll be challenged, to be sure. I think he’s up for it.

"I have been young....

and now am old; yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, or his children begging for bread."

Psalm 37

It's so great to page down through these and see all of this young life in the family!

So as a way of providing a little generational bookend, here are a couple of shots we took down in Kentucky with Mary Alice.

















We had a terrific visit, she was an absolute delight. John and TJ really had fun visiting, and were pretty amazed at how many details she knew about what they were doing..."Now TJ, you're going in to high school now at St. Theodore Guerin, and John, you're still at Our Lady of Mt Carmel in the seventh grade, isn't that right?"...

She was waiting for us in the sitting room, and we talked there for a while, and the she wanted to walk us down to the chapel so we could see that. This was where she took her final vows, about 70 years ago.




She remembered that day very well and said that as they were processing in, Dick got loose from his mother and was running around in between all the sisters, asking, "have you seen Mary Alice?" causing more than a little giggling among those about to take vows. She thinks Dick got in some trouble for that one..

She loved to hear about the boys, especially about school (imagine that!). John asked a lot about her teaching days, and she told us about a time she was monitoring detention hour after school once on a snowy Colorado day. She came in to the room and directed them all to seats, then she sat down herself to do some work. Detention was supposed to be quiet, but one boy came to her and said, "Sister, I don't think I should be here." Mary Alice told him kindly but firmly to sit down and be quiet, and that the time would pass quickly. He started to protest more, but a stern look from our beloved aunt made him sit. Near the end of the hour, he came up again and said, "Sister, I really don't think I should be in here." Mary Alice sort of sighed, and said, "Well I'm sure your teacher had a good reason for sending you here...what exactly did you do in class?" He said, "That's what I mean, Sister... I'm not even a student here. I just came in for a minute to get warm."

Oh well...even the best of teachers make a mistake now and then. She still gets a laugh out of that one.

Her mind is as sharp as ever, and the others there seem to love her dearly. The hallway was full of smiles as she scooted her walker slowly to the chapel with my boys at her side. It's hard not to be taken by her...I had visited her a few weeks prior with some friends of mine (we were on retreat at a monastery a few miles away) and they still ask about her. She is quite a remarkable woman.

She is pretty frail, and sometimes has trouble breathing. Her vision is just about completely gone, and her hearing is just so-so. She can get around okay with her walker, it's just slow and it tires her out. She mostly stays in her room, listens to books on tape, and goes down to Mass. She loves the Blessed Sacrament Chapel they have there, and she sits and prays for all of us. I'm not sure if I am describing this well...but it was such a pleasure to spend time with her. It's sort of hard to put in words. When we sat with her, we seemed to be in the presence of Joy...in its finest and fullest sense. She doesn't have any of what the world tends to think of as "quality of life"...and yet she is joyful. She smiled the whole time we were there, and the staff told me what a real pleasure she was to have around. "Sister Mary is such a delight to have here...Sister Mary is a like a bouquet of fresh flowers to us...Sister Mary is so full of sweetness and light..."

I guess it sort of reminded me that a life given to God is returned in abundance, and that His life gives us cause for joy even in difficult times. I was glad to be reminded of what a gift she is to our family.

God Bless you, Mary Alice...


"And Mary said, 'My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior; for He has regarded the low estate of His handmaiden.'" (Luke 1:46-47)

We have Kindergarten

Hello all! I am getting my feet wet with this blogging thing, so bear with me. It has been a fun but short summer in the Eichstadt household. I am still playing vampire at the American Red Cross and enjoying it. Andrew is making block with Oberfield's and was recently promoted to the night shift Team Leader, while working some weekend shifts with Anheuser Busch.

This past Monday, our baby girl officially started her gig with school. Her Teacher's name is Mrs. Greulich, the kids call her Mrs. G for obvious reasons! She learned about Egypt, her favorite part of her school day is "moving my clip up" on her behavior color chart and her best friend at the moment is "Mo Mo Pickles". Mo Mo is an old friend from daycare that she was gleefully reunited with. Mo Mo is short for Morgan and my nosy self has still not found out if her last name could really be Pickles!

Here she is at her seat: And outside the school with her

"Disney Princess" backpack!

Then, just in case Makenna hitting a milestone wasn't enough for my Mommy emotions, Quinn has officially turned 12 years old. We had a small celebration at home and here is a picture of Quinn.

I thought he would appreciate me sharing this photo of him from our trip last weekend to Cincy. Makenna coerced him into riding this.

The Amazing Walking Bunny

Here is Bunny standing after having enjoyed some left overs of her brother's pudding snack. Today at 3:42pm, she took her first step, completely unassisted! I'm sure she's be running marathons with Granpda Joe in only a matter of weeks!

Hello from Vermont

Hello to all from the RV-ing Kenlons. This photo gives you a glimpse of our vehicle -- and Dan relaxing outside while our dinner cooks on the tabletop grill. We are greatly enjoying the change of pace and are learning a lot about things like water and sewer hook-ups and how cups of coffee left on the counter have a way of flying off when you're driving down the road at 60 mph!

Seriously, it's great and we find that we are readily adapting to this way of life. I'm really sorry we only have a couple of days left! We hope to camp near Hyde Park NY tomorrow so we can take in the FDR historic sites before we have to return the RV on Saturday morning. And the cat is doing great, too!

Hope to be hearing details soon about the two big school-related transitions in the family this month - Makenna starting kindergarten and Matt headed off to college!!!

Camping with the cat

Well, Dan and I are taking off early tomorrow morning on our first-ever RV trip. We'll be spending the next week at Apple Island Resort & Campgrounds at scenic Lake Champlain, situated on the New York/Vermont border. After running an absolutely manic work schedule for the past few months, we're both more than ready for a relaxing week away.

We'll hardly be roughing it, as we will certainly be taking along our laptop, cellphones, portable DVD player and coffee pot! Oh, yes - Abby the Cat is coming along, too. Since we have been thinking for a long time that we'd like to do RV-ing after we retire, we thought this would be a good chance to experiment. We'll let you know how it goes (and in case you wondered, she is very much an indoor cat).

The campground apparently has WiFi, and if that's so, we'll give you an on-the-scene report of any panicked scratches that Miss Cat has inflicted on us. (Karen, you may be thinking this already, and you're absolutely right - Mother would not approve!!)

Today we're basically getting ready and trying to decide what meals we should cook in a tiny RV kitchen for a week. Again, we have no plans to scrounge for nuts and berries in the woods!

Hope everyone has a great week ahead - with special thoughts of little Michael and his parents as they continue to settle in together in Chicago!!

Next Stop Hollywood

After having such rave reviews from her adoring fans, Young Berneice is looking to star in a new flick "Night-Night for Baby". It's a catch phrase sweeping the nation! No child should be put to bed without the age old comforting words, "Night-night". And who can say it better than our very own Bunny? But wait - there's more. This time - it's a musical! Yes, her talented big brothers will lead her in a rousing rendition of "Twinkle-Twinkle Little Star" complete with motions! As director, coreographer, vocal coach and costume designer - you can see how much preparation is required. Rehersals have been emotional, as her encouraging brothers sometimes "help" Bunny a little too much with the motions. (She interpruts such critique as a physical assult!) Yes, tears have been shed, but I think this is all the more proof that Hollywood is only a hearbeat away for this young star.

Here everyone can enjoy a behind the scenes look at our leading costume choice for male vocal lead, Drew Ely!

Also in the works - a collaboration, never seen before - Berneice and Abby in "Anything You Can Do, I Can Do Better". Here, parental units will set these sweet girls on opposing sides comparing their eating, crawling, assisted walking and overall cuteness factors. For a grand finale, a head to head, in saying "Ma-ma". A swimsuit competition was debated, yet we are trying to keep our G rating - it's a family film, people.

Reviews of blockbuster summer movies

Ely family members everywhere are flocking to their computers to catch the hottest new flicks of the season - both sure contenders in the category of "Best Short Subjects."

If you haven't yet taken in the long-awaited film trilogy from Waun Productions, Inc., rush right over and savor every moment of this triple treat, all based on the July birthday celebration of the star, Abbey Waun. Filmmaker Scott Waun presents a moving look at this milestone event with "Grandma's Luncheon," "Gettin' Ready," and "Abbey's First Birthday Party."

Whether in quiet moments or large crowd scenes, young Abbey demonstrates her versatility as a one-year old -- able to be really, really cute while eating cake, crawling into a pint-sized chair, or opening gifts and chewing on the wrapping paper. The final scene is particularly compelling -- you might say it's the "sleeper hit" of the summer.

Watch for special cameo appearances by such delightful performers as Quinn and Makenna, Scott's little niece Haley, and even some people we don't know, but who looked like they were having a good time.

But that's not all -- making her debut on YouTube this summer is young Berneice Ely, the adorable star of the critically-acclaimed indie film, "Bunny Says Da-Da." Miss B gives us a convincing performance as she giggles and crawls around the playroom floor. The delivery of her key line is subtle, but unforgettable. Grandmother Kathy Ratcliffe is admirable in her supporting role, while Susan Ely also does impressive double-duty as both cinematographer and line-prompter. A most satisfying experience in both cuteness and sweetness.

Fans of Miss B will want to be on the lookout for a sequel - family insiders report that the young actress is now saying "night-night" while smiling and waving. We can only hope that she'll light up the YouTube screen for us once again, perhaps joined by those irrepressible twin brothers of hers.

Abbey's First Birthday Party

Here's a video we put together from Abbey's first birthday party on July 14. All of her cousins got together for the first time, as well as some of her Aunts and Uncles and both sets of grandparents. We had a wonderful weekend... thanks to everyone who was able to join us!

EDIT: I removed the embedded video, because I couldn't figure out how to stop it from playing automatically. Instead, here's a link to the birthday videos. If the video doesn't play smoothly, just hit pause and let it buffer for a minute or so before hitting play again.