Family Fun . . .

I've been quite behind with posting pictures of different things we have been busy with over the summer. We have begun many different activities with the young married of our church as well as having church-wide get-togethers. The following is a pictures show of our fun times with our church family and friends.


WASHINGTON DC
We took a trip to DC recently to see Ben & Carissa. Unfortunately, we didn't get any pictures with them, even though we were around them the whole time!



Smithsonian



World War II Memorial



The Mall with the Lincoln Memorial in the background.



Fun with the Monument.



More fun!! Waiting for Ethan to go "fotty" (a.k.a. "potty")

PHOTO SCAVENGER HUNT WITH YOUNG MARRIED COUPLES



Couple we asked to kiss! They we happy to accomodate our request!



Two Member in front of the "Golden Arches"



TJ trying to score points for being a Twin. The girls didn't let that fly!



The Guys Team

PICNIC BY THE LAKE
We spent the afternoon eating, tubing, skiing, swimming, and jet skiing! It was a great time!



Our Picnic



Ashlyn looking spectacular!



Us on the Jet Ski



Front of the boat!



Pastor Skiing!



Our wonderful Pastor & His Wife!

TAILGATING & THE WILLIAM & MARY FOOTBALL GAME



Our "table" for our tailgating. Yup, that's our boogie board from our trunk! =) You do what you gotta do!



The Gang



The Happy Couple



Kick-Off



Shannon & I with the final score after double overtime! Needless to say, we got our money's worth!!

BUSCH GARDENS - AGAIN!



Our Lunch at Red Lobster before our day at B.G. - We both had plans to tell the other couple that we were expecting! So very funny and so very exciting!!



ICE CREAM!!! YUM! - This one is for you Mom!



The guys with part of the decor for Howl-O-Scream at B.G.

Colonial Baptist Church County Fair



Pastor & His Family



Daisy & Buck



Godiva in the Petting Zoo



Daisy & The Scarecrow



Logsdon's & Hines' with the barn that they raised!



Our Baby Announcement to our church!



Hmm? What's different?



After the pie eating contest!

The Big Reveal . . .

Here are some clues for you to figure out what's new in the lives of the Hines Family . . .


This is how we told our church family last weekend at our Harvest Party (thus, the Hickville getup). Figure out the mad gab and you've got the first clue!



I sent this picture to my Mom back home. She is proud to admit that Godiva is her granddog and always asks about her. Sometimes Godiva speaks back to Grandma as well. (Fine, now you know, we are a big fan of our dog . . . in case you hadn't picked up on that from our frequent mentioning of her and her happenings as well!!)



We had the blessed privilege of telling some of our family in person as they were here last month. This was their reaction . . . Don told them the news just before snapping the picture so that we could capture their expressions and post it for all the world to see! Lucky us!!



This is the last and final clue! This is how we found out the grand news!



If you haven't figured it out yet, then I am quite sure that writing it out for you wouldn't help either, but I'll go ahead and fill you in on it anyway. We are expecting the arrival of our first child! We are about 11 weeks along and were able to hear the heart beat and see our little one on the ultrasound last week. What a great honor to be able to see just a glimpse into our creative God's handiwork!! We were once again amazed at His grace for allowing us the great responsibility of raising a child. We would greatly appreciate your prayers as we enter this new stage of life as well as for the health of this "bun in the oven".

A Few Firsts . . .

Mom, Dad, Erika, and Sean's First Visit to our Home in Virginia!

The family made the twelve to fourteen hour trip from Michigan to come and see us a few weekends ago. They traveled all day Friday and stayed through Monday. We were able to go and stay with them up in Williamsburg for two nights. On Saturday we made the journey to the "most beautiful theme park in America", Busch Gardens, and tried all of the major rides, since the lines were so short! Sunday we attended our church in Williamsburg, made the hour trek to our home, and then onto P.F. Changs restaurant for some yummy lupper and then to the "hurricane waters" of the Atlantic!! They visited the weekend that Tropical Storm Gabrielle came ashore in North Carolina. The effects of the storm were still evident all the way to Virginia Beach. The waves were crashing against the shore, but that didn't stop our adventure seeking family!! They endured the thrashing of the Atlantic, and then took out the boogie boards and could catch almost every wave! It was a blast!!

Thanks again Mom, Dad, Erika, and Sean for making the long trip down to see us! We love and miss you guys!!







Don & Sean are third and fourth from right!!














First Volleyball Games!!

The volleyball season is officially underway. We began our season two weeks ago. We have a much different schedule this season with many larger Christian schools that we are up against. So far we are 2 - 0 in our conference and 0 - 2 in non-conference play, bringing our record to 2 wins and 2 losses. The girls have played well this season and I look forward to seeing how they will handle the pressure of some of our tougher conference games!



A little "Bind Us Together" for the old assistant coach, Kristen Varner! We miss you Coach Varner!!

Over the last couple months when Don and I had a few spare moments in the midst of our schedule, we created our own cabinet for our half-bath that is attached to our bedroom. Last summer I took on the project of stripping the wallpaper (cursed material!!!) and painting the bath to match our dark tan bedroom. We invested in a new sink, mirror, and accessories. However, since then I had been looking for a cabinet to put over the toilet to add to our much needed storage. I could not find one that I liked for less than $80. So, Don took it upon himself to create a cabinet to my specifications (because once I get something in my head, I don't compromise until I get it - even if that means I never get it - one of my positive and negative qualities combined!). This was his very first woodworking project, except for the homeschooling days when one of the dad's had him and some other boys make stools. I think it turned out great! Thanks sweetie for being brave and taking on new tasks to satisfy your "particular" wife!

Sorry for those of you who have been waiting with the drum roll slightly beating since the Godiva-killing-birds story!! I was out in the yard sanding, staining, and polyurethaning our creation when the tragedy occurred. Thanks for your patience.

The Beginning of the End . . .

Today marks the first day of classes for Don's last year of seminary!!! We are truly blessed with an easier schedule for both of us. Don has only four classes to complete to be eligible for graduation. He was going to be an over-achiever and squeeze in another hard class this semester because he loves the professor, but he decided against it (to my great delight). Next semester he has one main class that all seniors need to take before the end of their seminary career and we are also planning on going to the Biblical Counseling Training Conference again this year held in Lafayette, IN. Don receives an elective credit for taking this course, and it's great because I get to attend with him and it is a really great learning time for us!

I also have a slower schedule. As many of you know, I am no longer teaching 2nd grade. It is really neat how the Lord continues to prove over and over that we are in the center of His will. I ended on a great note, I had a great class and we had a lot of fun. I am now working from home. I had a friend who got me into what she was doing. I make my own hours and the pay is not bad (especially because I can do it in my PJ's!!). I am trying to still work part time (20 hours). I am also staying busy with the volleyball girls. The volleyball season has just begun this week and this is my last year coaching them. I am already sad, and it is just the first week. I love being with these girls. They are a lot of fun and are so sweet!

Godiva is still up to the same old routine. She begins her day with a stretch outside, going potty, a little breakfast to give her the strength to make it to the office floor, where she then proceeds to lay down and nap. This basic pattern occurs all day. Thankfully she has enough energy to now follow me around as I do the laundry or other various tasks of keeping up the home! I think she is grateful that I am home too, so she is not stuck in her 2'x3'x3' cage for eight to ten hours a day.

Thanks especially to family and friends who have been praying for us as we have gone through this seminary experience. God has been very gracious and He has proven Himself over and over to us. I can't speak for Don, but I know that He would never take back these years he has put into his further education. I am so very proud of my husband as he has followed God's direction and has excelled in what he has put his hand to.

Post Dedicated to: Shannon Conley - who gave me the inspiration and idea for this post! Congrats again on your little "Jason Bourne Conley"!!

The view from my backyard . . .

I am about to admit something that I found today that was absolutely horrifying in my backyard!!! Don and I are working on a project that will be revealed sometime this month on our blog (it is almost finished!!). As I was about to begin my stage of the project, I noticed Godiva shoot around to the side yard. Not completely out of the norm, since she is a huge chaser of anything that moves even grass and sticks sometimes. When she returned to the main yard, she was not alone. She was preceded by a young robin that was flying low to the ground. It was squealing bloody murder and as I continued to watch this saga enfold before my eyes, I realized why it was screeching so awfully. . . GODIVA! Out of nowhere her paw batted the bird back to the ground and continued the chase on her level. She continued to play cat and mouse throughout the backyard. The bird then brought backup. I had several other robins sitting on the tree limbs, surrounding fences and shed all squawking at the hunter and yet helpless in their attempt to free their friend. Godiva paying no mind to anything other than the prey in front of her amused herself by grabbing the bird by the wing and flinging it. (You are probably thinking, "Katrina, for goodness sake, do something, anything, for the life of this helpless bird rests in your hands!!") So being the quick and independent thinker that I am, I picked up my cell and called Don! I held the phone up in the air so he could hear the chaos coming from our small backyard and explained that our dog, yes dog, not lion, had caused this ruckus. He brought me back to the sobering reality that Godiva is a Labrador Retriever. She is bred to retrieve birds and that I should tell her "good girl" and put her in the house and we'll deal with the defeathered carcass later. To which I submissively responded, okay. But I couldn't do this before I got some good photos for those who are visual learners! =) I then had to call the mother of Godiva's best friend to explain that I don't think our dogs are good for each other anymore (completely joking!). Godiva has taught Cali some naughty habits, and now it seems as if Cali is teaching Godiva a thing or two about a dog's life (Sorry Sarah, your secret is no longer safe!)





For those of you who are still worried about the bird, I brought Godiva back into the house; I pulled out the shovel and freed the bird into our neighbor's yard. However, I don't believe this bird will make it back into the tree. I never thought of my sweet Godiva being so cruel. Fly hunter, yes! Cockroach killer, Yes, Yes! Cricket smoosher, fine and dandy! Grasshopper chomper, that is just grand! Bird torturer, I'm not too keen on this new development! This now concludes the episode of "The Circle of Life at our Chesapeake Home"! Excuse me as I go and wash out Godiva's mouth, which is suppose to be one of the cleanest mouths all of the animal kingdom, but is now infected with all the diseases that the bird might have been carrying with it!

Happy Birthday to Don . . .

TOMORROW!!

But since we'll be involved with our church later on this evening and all tomorrow, I thought I would celebrate blog-style today.

Last weekend we began our celebration early. Since Don had the weekend off and his fishing buddy, TJ, was free; we did something that we have wanted to do since we moved to Virginia Beach. I decided that Don has enough stuff and no where to put more stuff, so I decided the biggest part of his present would be a charter boat fishing trip. We also found a coupon for buy one afternoon fishing trip, get one free!!! Now that is our style! =)

We had a great time pulling up fish after fish! By the time all was said and done, we had a bucket of Croakers. Each of us even caught a sand shark! A few others on the boat caught Flounders, but they had to be a specific size in order to keep them. Another guy caught a stingray! It was a lot of fun, so much so that even the less experienced fisherman could have a great time as well and even catch some fish.

Here is a few pictures from Don's Birthday Celebration Day - the week before his actual birthday!



A picture of where we will be fishing. You can not tell by the picture, but it was storming like crazy when we left the dock and in this picture. But as you can see by the rest of the pictures, we escaped the rain, thunder, and lighting when we got further out into the Bay.



The Happy Couple!



Heading out of the marina and out to the fishing spot. We were fishing out by the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel (which has three tunnels and many miles long!!). We were out to the second tunnel and around the bridges.



Our fishing companions - TJ and Shannon! Shannon is holding up her "dukes" that have been wrapped with the "Seabands" that are suppose to prevent motion sickness. Let's just say she won't be endorsing them anytime soon!



The first shark caught - by your's truly! Look Mom, I'm holding it! Aren't you so proud!



The Birthday Boy's double catch!



TJ and his big catch of the day! This is a black sea bass.



Our bucket full of fish!



Don's Shark!



The guys in their glory!


Thanks again, TJ and Shannon, for coming and celebrating with us!


AND . . .

Don, I am so glad that I have a chance to celebrate with you another year of eldership! I love being married to you and I love how the Lord has brought us together and given us such a strong bond! Happy Birthday Donny!