Savoring the season

Watching bees and butterflies is so captivating to our little guy.

Making a huge, dirty mess in the sandbox is always a favorite on a beautiful day.

We love getting dirty!

Remembering that just as fast as the summer passes, so does the time with have with our children at home. I just can't believe how fast the time is going as Olivia is becoming a beautiful young lady in so many ways. 

Day Trip

We took the kiddos on a day trip to Chicago last week. It was a very long day, but thankfully the weather was beautiful and the kiddos did great. Here are a few pictures of what we did.

Our first stop was to the museum of Science and Industry. There is so much to see and learn.

We enjoyed seeing a lot of things we had learned about in space last year. Here is astronaut Josh.

Astronaut Olivia

And our Astronaut Nate

They really enjoyed spending time watching a chick hatch from its egg.

Learning about electricity.

Getting ready to watch Born to be Wild at the Omani-Max theater. It was really cool to watch.

Next stop was a stop to the American Girl store. 

What's a trip to Chicago without pizza. We walked over to Gino's Pizza for a very delicious deep dish pizza. It was so thick we could only eat one piece each.

A lot of walking to all the stores for one little boy.

I packed their pj's to put on for the way home. Good thing we did as they all fell asleep on the way home as making memories can make you exhausted.

Sweet Sixteen

Hubby and I celebrated sweet 16 years of marriage Friday. What makes it sweet, grace. The same kind of grace that Jesus gave us. Forgiving one another and realizing that Jesus is the only one that can truly fulfill us and make us complete. With God's help I am looking forward to enjoying the next 16 years with my one true love.

I was surprised with a dozen roses (and a hamper as a joke).

I surprised him with a Broncos t-shirt and tickets to go see a Broncos football game. He was so excited.  I ordered them 5 months ago making it is so hard not to tell him.  Thanks to both of our moms for helping me pull this gift together.

Miss Livy's Glasses

I took Miss Livy to the eye doctor last week. I had been noticing that she was having a hard time reading things far away and had mentioned that somethings seemed blurry to her. She had never had her eyes checked before so I took her in and her vision was off. So she picked out the frames and they got them ordered. Today they called and we went  and picked them up. Nastia and dad told her that she looks very smart. That brought a huge smile to her face as I know she was afraid of what people would say to her. I can't believe how grown up she looks in them. Our baby is growing up.

Camping Trip

We went camping this weekend with our church family. We had so much fun hanging out together and enjoying a relaxing weekend. We even had a church service this morning. Here's our gain with the visitor we had in our tent. Josh's buddy ,Caleb, joined us as his parents aren't the camping type.  Here they  are on their way to explore some trails with dad while mom relaxes.

Dinner Time!

Boy and their fires. Our boys really like gathering sticks to keep the fire going with dad's help. I'm not sure we really needed one as it was 90 degrees and their were all ready two others going in our group.

Thank goodness for the pool. All of the kiddos hung out there Saturday afternoon and after service Sunday.

Movie time! We hung up a sheet so the kiddos could watch The Lorax before bed.

During the movie the adults had a euchre tournament.  ( I should say the guys did, as us mom's made our  much needed late night pop run to Mc Donald's!). 

All of us were exhausted tonight, but I know that  this will be one of those memories the kids will always remember and hopefully becoming an annual tradition.

Batter Up

When you have a bucket of  rotten tomatoes.....

you don't throw them out. (Notice the tomato in midair)

You put on your play clothes, grab a bat,

and knock the smithereens out of them.  The best part is  covering yourself and who ever pitched the ball with tomatoes. What can I say, we are easy to entertain around here.  Make the most of the last days of summer!

Not much has been going on here lately. School is now in full swing and we are adjusting to our new routine while still trying to enjoy the nice summer days. Not much is going on with our adoption right now. We are awaiting to hear back from another grant and a no-interest loan in order to proceed forward. It could be another four weeks before hearing anything. Please keep this in your prayers as both of these prospects would be a huge moving process for us. Have a great week!

Nate showing off his school work. He is so cute when he comes up to me and says, "Do I have school today?"

Daddy-principal- and now P.E. teacher....Jeff had been given the job of being the kids physical education teacher.

He has them doing some kind of aerobic exercise everyday....I really need to get motivated and join them.

So grandad Allen dropped off a load of dirt in our yard. The kids have discovered it to be their new playground. I looked over and they had their rollers on top of it and rolling down. They attempted to get the four-wheeler up it at one point. Oh my what a mess they were.

This is awesome!

I'm having the best time ever!

Thanks for the fun time Allen!

Jeff found this bike wash idea in a Lowes magazine so he and the boys made their own. I should have put them in it after the dirt pile.

First day of school!

Today we started our 2012/2013 school year! I was expecting a lot of grumbling, but to my surprise they said they were glad to be back. Josh told me he liked school today. We will see how long it lasts. Have  a great day!

First day of school!

Olivia 9 years

Josh 7 years

Nate 4 years (starting pre-K this year!)

Those weird homeschoolers!

I sat up their desk last night when they were in bed. They all got surprises for the first day.

Checking out their notes.

Our goals everyday.

Livy asked me to add this picture. She and daddy dug up potatoes from the garden today. She was excited about this big one they dug up. We will see how they taste with dinner tonight!