06.26

Next weekend is July 4th! Where did this come from???

If anyone is interested. Purdue has a rockin' fireworks show on Sat and our church's picnic in on Sunday. It will be a great time if you are interested in joining us for a fun-filled weekend!

06.23

And so the weeks goes on…

It is hot here. So hot that we have the air on! I am sure the kids appreciate it.

We ventured to the big park today. Too bad that some punk kids were performing dangerous jumps off the equipment. Using foul words to boot.

We ventured down the another play area. 10 minutes later the kids were ready to go. Gavin has been begging to go to this park forever too! It was just too hot today!

Apparently, Even had a thing about being sweaty. He had his shirt completely off by the time we hit the car.

We came home and pulled out the slip-n-slide. I don’t think they had fun at all :)

Then they broke the slip-n-slide and improvised. We have some smart kids on our hands!

VBS is going really well….me and Jason are helping with the outdoor games and it’s really hot. But a lot of fun.

I think we may be going swimming at a friends pool tomorrow.

06.22

It’s VBS week around these parts…..Vacation Bible School.  That means that it is a fun and fast, and LOOOOONG week of lots of activities.  It also means that the kids sleep well.  There is lots of action around the day here too….cause we have some visitors.

Say Hello Evan

 

Alyssa, you too!

A house with five kids can get really loud!  But there is always something going on.  Like this:

And some of this…..

    

And who couldn’t resist some of this:

But….all I ever get from him is this…..

Ok…maybe not always!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We are planning a picnic at the park tomorrow.  A trip to the pool and maybe some Chuck E Cheese.  I am sure that the kids are going to be bored some next week.  This momma only has so many tricks up her sleeve.

On a serious note….or not so serious.  There is this little rumor going around that I am expecting another little brownie.  That would be FALSE if any one cares to know.  I would like to believe that it started with my little April Fools prank, but I tend to lean towards my love for cookies.  K?

Relay for Life

Jason is doing something really cool....and really fun!

He is part of the Caterpillar Relay for Life team.

He recruited his wife to make their poster. It's being plastered all over the facitilites...in 11x17 color.....no pressure there! (Click to make it bigger)YOU (Yes...you!) CAN HELP HIM REACH HIS GOAL!

Now, I know you've got big plans with that wad of money sitting in your pocket, but this is a great cause.

Go here to donate: CLICK ME!!!!!!!!!

His goal is just $200, but I know that we can surpass that if everyone gives just a little. $5. $10. How about $50?

Now, stop reading me and go!

06.16

I have good news and bad news. Well actually I just have lots of news.

We just saved a lot of money by refinancing our house. Me + saving money = :) :) :)

Gavin's last game baseball game is Thursday. It the championship game and they are playing a team that they can't seem to beat.

I am taking the kids swimming with a friend tomorrow. Pray for us :)

Jason is sticking with the exercise routine. Down 15+ pounds and up to 5 miles every other day. He's still on track to lose 30 by Mid-July.

We got to go to Chicago on Saturday with some dear friends. It was so much fun to hang out. Too bad the weather was rainy and cold. I don't think the kids missed us at all.

Oh...and I got my new camera. I've only taken about 400 pics in the last few days....cough, cough....only 400! Not that I NEEDED a new camera, I just wanted one. I want to feel confident taking pics for other people and my other camera had some limitations that were holding me back. So no, I didn't need anything, but my husband caved to my nagging....cough, cough. I mean he wants to give me opportunities to let my creativity blossom. Or something like that.

Eek!

I have so much to learn. Here are a few favorites from this week. I obviously love faces best. I need to work on that.

P.S. My grandmother passed away in Connecticut last Thursday. Please pray for my extended family. She will surely be missed.

06.10

Just some randomness since I haven't had a good picture post lately. Who doesn't love a good pic post.

We celebrated my mother in laws birthday at Jason's grandma's farm a few weeks ago. The boys LOVE the farm and are always super excited to spend the day there! Meet Little Nakayla. My sweet little niece. He's not to fond of Jason and seems to tolerate me. Oh well...I think she picks up that I don't know what to do with girls....haha.
His Grandma has the best perennials I have ever seen. I can't wait to "help" her divide some of them. They are seriously gorgeous and she has flower beds around her whole house. So jealous :)

They have a barn for the babies. The boys love to let the cows suck on their fingers.....ewww.....I don't go near them. I do help them sanitize and wash and sanitize afterwards! Ha!
The first sign that summer in near...the sprinkler of course.
Made these for rodeo day for Gavin at school. See what you can do with a swiffer stick, a computer printout, some googly eyes, and some felt! I was of course the coolest mom ever for this one! They play with them all the time. Darn, guess I can't swiffer now.
All I wanted for my b-day....ok NOT all....but I love a good family picture with me in it. Hey at least everyone is looking. Too bad I need a haircut and Nolan ain't smiling.....I really shouldn't complain....

I LOVE MY BOYS!

Gavin

I am so annoyed with blogger. I can't move my pics around....but you get the idea.

Let's just take this opportunity to share about my eldest son...who just happened to have a huge day today! He's been playing baseball (as you know) but as the season has went on, he just couldn't get on base. He got on in the first few games, but the kids get better and he would either strike out or get thrown out. It was starting to get to his confidence. Guess what? He got on base twice tonight! He even scored a run. It was so exciting. He is improving so much and as him momma... I was so proud of his accomplishment.

And......

I am sure that I shared this. I can't believe I haven't.....See that pin on his shirt???

Gavin was chosen as the eagle award recipient in his class this year. It is an award given to one boy and one girl in each class who has shown Christ-like character and leadership throughout the entire year. It's a huge honor and says so much about him as a person. You always hope that the things that you teach your kids carry out into real...well you know. It just makes me proud that he chooses to respect others and show love to everyone.

It's been forever since I have share pics of the boys....Unfortunately I am too tired (read: too lazy) to make an entire post at the moment. But here's a good one.....says so much about things that go on around these parts these days.

05.08

We survived our first week off of school! Things are starting to hit a groove with the kids. Today me and Gavin made a list of the things we wanted to do before school started again. Here are some of the many things we came up with:

1. trip to the zoo

2. plant green beans

3. wash the cars

4. make a lemonade stand

5. have a sleepover

6. go to the beach!

7. have a family game night

8. dig for fossils

9. stay up late to use the telescope

10. create our own holiday

Pretty creative, huh? There are many, many more! I think we will pick a one or two each week and see what we can do to accomplish them. Some may take a little more creativity to accomplish :)

We are working on developing godly characteristics in our kids so we decided that this summer would be a great time to start learning a new character quality every few days. We'll work on honesty, love, gentleness, self-control, attentiveness, courtesy, fairness, generosity, tactfulness....etc.....there are so many. It'll be great for us parents too! We need to be reminded of the things we should be doing...but aren't.

We decided that our first character quality would be creativeness......it means doing something in a new way. Today, we worked on being creative with our time this summer (the list above) and were creative in making up a new game this afternoon.

This week we are also memorizing I Timothy 4:12...

Do not let anyone look down on you because you are young, but be an example for other believers in your speech, behavior, love, faithfulness, and purity.

If you want to start something like this with your kids....shoot me an email...I have some great resources to get started.....

In other news, we are planning a trip up north this weekend for a Cubs game. Jason is soooo excited! It's gonna be so much fun to hang out with great friends. Praying for NO rain!

Not much else to report on. I just made a huge purchase....a VERY stressful decision that I hope works out like I hope. I'll share more when it comes in! I am so excited for this one.....

05.05

Hey ya'll. Glad your still with me.

It's been a busy week. Actually, it's been busy, but I've been lazy. I like those kinds of weeks!

Nothing new and exciting really, so I guess you get to hear about all the boring stuff going on here.

Gavin is almost done with baseball. One more week of games and then the playoffs. He is doing better every game. They came back and tied last night only to lose in the end. It was exciting to watch. I am amazed at the talent these 7 and 8 year olds have.

Jason continues with his weight loss goal. He is aiming for 30lbs by mid-July and has already lost 15! He running 4+ miles every other day and doing a Jillian Michaels (biggest loser trainer) video on his off nights. Watching what he eats, too. I am so proud of him for sticking with it. You can really start to see the difference already. Now, if only I wasn't so lazy......

We had a great garage sale last weekend. We sold tons of stuff. I always go through the entire house every year. If I haven't used it in a year....it goes. I love uncluttered closets and empty 18 gallon tubs. The garage is still a mess, though.....need to work on that this weekend. We even sold our sofa for more than we bought it for 7 years ago. Gotta love that!

I have been busy working on a few misc graphic design projects. I even had a newborn shoot the other day. Check out on of my new favorites..

He was a great little listener. Sat so still for me :)

Speaking of shoots, I've been meaning to get some new family pictures taken. Ugh...not so easy when I am always behind the camera. I really should do it before it gets too hot.

Garage sale season is in full swing now and we hit some really go ones in the past few weeks. It's been fun to get some new stuff for the kids and even for me :)

ok...so that was the most random post ever.