Memorial Day 2011

For Memorial Day this year, the shindig was at our house. The weather turned out to be beautiful! We had a barbecue with lots of yummy food, played games, did a ton of gabbin', and had an all-around good time!

Grandpa, of course, spent the entire day outside with the kids.

The girls found some snakes in the pasture.

Playing in the back of Uncle Jeremy's truck.

A rousing game of croquet

The 'green' team

Aunt Babe got some cuddle time in with Nolan. I'm not really sure who enjoyed it more!
Love this lady!!!

My new hobby is making cake pops, so I decided to make bouquets for the table decor. It was so much fun!

As we observe this holiday, we honor the men and women who have given their lives to fight for our freedom. And to the families that have lost loved ones, and have sacrificed so much......
Thank You!

Random pictures of the kids

The kids had just come home from my parent's house, and I was trying to get a picture of Kaitlyn's hair- my mom had it fixed up so cute. I caught her having a 'discussion' with her baby.

She didn't want to pose for the camera, but she wanted to make sure I got pictures of her baby!

My little girl is getting so big!

Hmmm.... looks like someone might be ready for a nap!

Fun at the Park

We have a couple of really great parks fairly close by, so when we have nice weather, the kids love to go play.

They haven't quite gotten the 'train' down yet. So when they go down together, they usually end up side by side.

The swings are always a big hit!

Even Nolan enjoys playing on the toys!

Raaaaaaaaaaarrrr!

Mmmmm... Cake Pops!

The kids look forward to going to Starbucks... especially since they discovered cake pops.
Talon's not super picky about the kind he gets- though he prefers the white one, but Kaitlyn always wants pink.

The Starbucks we frequent in Canby has a nice area in the back with a leather couch and chairs. They also have a big bin of books for kids. So, they don't mind at all when we go for a coffee... and stay a while!

Rollin', rollin', rollin'....

I finally caught a video of Nolan rolling over.

7 months old

Nolan is now 7 months old, and is getting to be such a big boy!
He is finally rolling over to get his toys (as much as he dislikes being on his tummy!).
He is starting to mimic sounds he hears.
He has started saying "Dadadada".
He still hates to be fed with a spoon. He does, however, love to sit in the high chair to play.
He doesn't have any teeth yet, but gnaws on everything.
He sleeps up to 12 hours a night.
He loves hair, and grabs a fistful of it every chance he gets (even his own, unfortunately!).

He has graduated to his new tub.... and loves it! He's fascinated with the bubbles and likes to play with the bath toys.

Such a cute face!

I walked into the kitchen to check on him because he was being so quiet. Apparently, it was nap time!

Nolan-bug with Mommy.

A little power nap in the car.

A-a-a... Achooooo!

When I got up this afternoon, the sun was shining ,and it was very warm and beautiful outside. So, I decided to open up the windows in the house to get some fresh air. The kids got up from their naps, I put them in the tub, and we got ready to eat dinner. Kaitlyn, however, started sneezing repetitively when she got into the dining room. We're talking 10-15 times, at least! She's never showed signs of having allergies in the past, but now I felt horrible that my opening the windows had caused my little girl to start sneezing like crazy. She kept sticking her finger up her nose after each sneeze, so Anthony and I both started getting on to her and told her to keep her fingers out of her nose. I put the kids in their booster seats, put the food on the table, then got Kaitlyn some Kleenex so I could help her blow her nose that was dripping like a faucet. It was then that I realized the reason for her sudden onset of 'allergies'..... for out popped a large and intact, dried macaroni noodle. Apparently, she had dropped it on her chair the previous evening, and decided that her nostril would be a good place for safe keeping. I'm just glad that with all the digging she was doing to try and get it out, she didn't get it lodged. So crazy!! Now, when people have stories about the things their kids have shoved up their nose or in their ears, I no longer can say that my kids haven't tried it.

Mother's Day 2011

Since we got married on Saturday, the day before Mother's Day, every so often it lands on the same day. Like this year, for instance. We barbecued and had a nice dinner, then went over to my parents house to visit my mom for a while.
To me, there's nothing in life that quite compares to being a mother. It's a job, and often a very exhausting one; but it is also the most rewarding and fulfilling job I could ever have, and I wouldn't trade it for anything! I am so blessed to have 3 beautiful, healthy children that I thank God daily for!
I am also thankful for the wonderful mom that God has blessed me with!

My mom and Grandma on our wedding day.

Happy Mother's Day to all the fabulous moms I know!!

7 years

This past Sunday, May 8th, we celebrated our wedding anniversary. So happy for 7 wonderful years together! Every year at our anniversary, I like to look through the previous years' pictures, and our wedding pictures, and reminisce. Oh, how I love this man.... and immensely enjoy our life together!!

The day it all started....

7 years and 3 kids later... Happy Anniversary, Babe!!

Bowling

We took the kids bowling with Chad and Tori. We hadn't gone for a couple of years, so we were all a bit rusty. Of course the gutter rail was up, but I think the kids got a higher score the first game then some of us, but it was still a fun evening. Let me tell ya, it can be a bit chaotic when you have the adults on one lane, the kids on the other, and try to keep everyone bowling in order!

After the first couple of times bowling with the stand, Talon decided he wanted to roll the ball like the grown ups. They sure get independent fast, don't they?!

Anxiously awaiting their turn.