big sister

Lorelei visiting baby Benjamin in the hospital. she is so in love with her baby brother!

and a few with big brother too

introducing...

Benjamin Liam

9.17.13   2:18 pm

8lbs. 4oz.   21 in.

i love his kissy lips

we are home from the hospital and loving every minute with this sweet baby boy. we feel so blessed to have him in our family.

39 weeks

yes, my baby bump is ginormous! tuesday is the big day. so excited to meet my baby boy!!

back to school

2nd grade

4th grade

8th grade

we survived the first week of school! it's been hard going back to an early morning routine. i think i'm having a harder time adjusting than the girls. i sure do miss having them home with me during the day! i'm already counting down the days till christmas vacation :)

13

it's official! we have a teenager! elayna turned 13 last week. i can't believe she has entered the teen years.

her only request for her birthday was a skateboard. she has been wanting one for quite awhile and we finally gave in and got her one. she was very excited and has been on it everyday after school.

we feel so blessed to have Elayna as our oldest. she is such a hard worker and always willing to help with chores and play with her younger siblings. happy birthday Elayna! we love you so very much!

(big thanks to uncle jeremy, the skateboard expert, who directed us to zumiez and provided the wheels and trucks!)

toledo bend 2013

this summer has just flown by! can't believe school will start again in a couple of weeks. i feel like i haven't blogged much over the summer, but wanted to be sure and post a few photos from our annual trip to toledo bend with my sister and her family. we always have the best time!

i told them to make silly faces :)

she got tired of her floatie and wanted to explore. we had to keep a close watch on this one!

the kids had lots of fun hiking the nature trails in the morning when it was a little cooler.

dahlia and lorelei

i am so thankful that my kids have cousins that live close by and are such good friends. i love that we get to go on these fun trips together and make memories. don't think we will ever forget all the daddy long leg spiders in the cabin! yuck!

summer reading

here's just a few of the books i've been reading this summer:

this book is magical! the author's descriptions and imagery are breathtaking. this is one book that would make a very good movie!

i really enjoyed both Angels and Demons and The Lost Symbol, also written by Dan Brown, so i was excited to read his latest book. while this one is not quite as good as the others, it was a definite page turner and very action packed.

this book was so fascinating. it is about president James Garfield's assassination, the madman who shot him, and the doctors who ultimately killed him. Prior to reading this i knew absolutely nothing about President Garfield. His life and death were so interesting. i highly recommend this book.

this is a beautifully written memoir about life, love, and living off the land. this was a great read!

30 weeks

quick photo taken after church yesterday. getting so excited to meet baby boy! only a couple more months!

i wear this black maxi dress to church almost every week. it is sooo comfortable!

beach day

dan had the day off the friday after the 4th of july, so we decided to take a trip to the beach.

evan wore this life jacket almost the whole time because he wanted "to go out really deep and catch fish" with his net.

lolo loved the water! she ran back and forth through the waves. when a wave knocked her over, she would get right back up and keep going. it was so funny to watch.

the kids always love to bury each other in the sand

avery and aunt nicole chasing each other around uncle jeremy. the kids sure have fun with them. so glad they are now living in texas!

my sweet girl who turns 13 next month. it seems like just the other day she was the toddler running on the beach.

red, white, and blue

i got the idea for this 4th of july treat from pinterest and used this recipe for lemon cupcakes with cream cheese frosting.

the raspberries were so sweet and delicious.

the watermelon wasn't too bad either

another cute idea from pinterest. the girls had so much fun painting blue and white polka dot nails. avery's were a bit chipped by the time i had a chance to take a photo.

we had a great 4th! my brother jeremy and his wife nicole joined us for swimming, bbq, and fireworks at the city park.

4th of July pinwheels

fun little craft we made today. basic instructions found here.

we used a pencil wrapped in colored paper for the sticks

lazy days of summer...

summer is here and are we loving it!

sleeping in. staying in our pjs until noon. making homemade popsicles. taking lots of trips to the library. watching movies after dinner. snow cones at the park. and lots of water fun!

15 years

hard to believe it has been 15 years already! seems like just the other day we got married. i feel so blessed to have such a kind, loving husband who is truly my best friend and the love of my life.