Sam Series

Four months old today...it goes so fast!

This Summer

Matt moved into a new office at work...sorry, no photo, but it is beautiful


Carol went with fabulous friends to eat Fondue and then see Eclipse

Michael completed his first Scout Camp and then Trek



James, Anne, and Philip did two sessions of swimming lessons...

James can tread water for 10 minutes straight

Anne knows all of the strokes and can do most of them with great speed

Philip will take flying leaps off the side of the pool into someone's waiting arms


Sam doubled in size!

Philip's First Visit

To The Dentist!

Despite discovering the fact that Philip had two cavities at the ripe ol' age of three, he still managed to give me a cheesy grin.

Self Portrait

Taken June 11th.

What a priviledge to have Sam in our home. Truly.

the reason why Matt is the photographer of the family

Anne...after bobbing for apples

Yesterday, while on a short road trip

Anne and James were teasing each other and, much to my frustration, Anne kept tattling on everything James was doing.

Finally Anne yelled out, "Mom, James just said that he hates me."

In hopes that they could resolve this issue on their own, I replied, "Don't tell me about it Anne, talk to James."

At which point, Anne turned to James and said very quietly "I hate you too James."

I know that I should have been mad that Anne chose to handle the situation in that manner, but honestly it just made me laugh and laugh and laugh.

Lazy Mom

Our neighborhood roads are being resealed and it got Anne thinking. This conversation took place in the car on the way to Grandma's house today.

Anne: Mom, when I grow up I do not want to be a worker.

Me: You don't? What do you want to be?

Anne: I want to be a mom and be lazy.

Me: Oh Anne, moms have to do lots of work.

Anne: Well, I don't want to have to sweep or mop.

Me: Well then, who will do the sweeping and the mopping?

Anne: I will just have kids and have them do all the work because kids have to do what you say.

Let me know how that works out for you Anne. :)

Sam's Three Month Photo Shoot

Sam is officially three months old and I can't get enough of him. He has melted our hearts and he just belongs...you know?

Michael is the sweetest big brother. He is a huge help to me and I am so grateful to have him as my oldest.

James is a very nurturing soul. He will often be the first one to help Sam when he is sad and he loves to hold and play with him as well.

Anne adores Sam and she sings sweet melodies to him when he gets fussy.

Philip gives Sam kisses all day long and he loves to run to get Sam's binkie when he cries.

I love being a mom of a newborn with big kids in the house. It is very different then being a mom of a newborn with a bunch of little kids in the house.

I prefer this stage of mothering much more and I am so grateful for the opportunity to enjoy it all again...now with more knowledgeable eyes.

Holy Thick Hair Batman!

I bought new clippers this week. It is my third set. The first ones were given to me by a friend and they were on their last leg. So, once I figured out how easy it was to cut my boys' hair, I decided to invest in a brand new pair. Many, many, many haircuts later, the motor on the clippers just couldn't keep up. Especially on James' hair. It would get "bogged down" and make a terrible noise when I tried to run it through his hair.
So, I gave in and invested in a new pair. Here is the result of their first clippings.

The pile on the left belongs to James while the pile on the right belongs to Michael and Philip combined!

Hope these new clippers can withstand the thick hair on my second born.

Six Things I Miss About My Dad...

on the sixth anniversary of his passing.

1. His knowledge of everything mechanical...he knew how everything worked and there wasn't anything that he couldn't fix (or clean for that matter).

2. His love for my mom...my little sister Brenda and I used to fight over who got to sit by mom because we both knew that Dad would always get the other side.

3. His faith...one of dad's favorite scriptures is found in Job 19:25-26 "For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God."

4. His work ethic...he taught me that if something was worth doing, it was worth doing right...the first time.

5. His love of travel...we used to always stop at the most unique places so that a road trip would become memorable. We didn't have a lot of money when I grew up, but vacations were always a priority...even if we had to drive the whole way to California just to go to Disneyland for one day and then drive back home.

6. His love of the arts...dad loved music, plays, movies, art, good books, etc... Matt went to a concert last week and Devin commented that Dad would have loved to have joined him. Devin was right.

I miss you dad.