My cousins

Our family loves having my cousin, Andrew, close by so that we can experience life together. He comes over every week for dinner. Graham and Wesley love Andrew, and so do I. He's my baby cousin and we've always had a special bond. I laugh so much when I'm with him.

His brother, Chris, (another great cousin of mine) came in town and we got to see him while he was here. He's great, too, and my boys just adored him. These two men are going to make amazing husbands and daddies some day. Will and Graham helped Chris and Andrew make milkshakes after dinner.

my brother and his family, Andrew, Chris, and my family

Graham and Will thought Chris was a human jungle gym.

Wesley and his cousin, Drew, played so well together. They share toys and have fun together. We are hoping it continues.

Graham and Chris

10 Years

Tomorrow, Tim and I will celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary. As I have been thinking about the incredible blessing it is to be married to Tim, I thought I would record 10 things I love about my husband.

1. I love what a great daddy Tim is to our boys.
2. He can fix just about anything around our house and with our cars.
3. He is always looking for ways to help others.
4. He has a tender heart and is compassionate.
5. He makes me laugh.
6. He works very hard and strives to do his best and whatever he does.
7. He's loyal and faithful.
8. He makes me feel special.
9. He loves God and seeks to glorify and honor Him.
10. He shares the same dreams and goals for our family and our future.

The pool is open

Yes!!! Can you tell we love to go swimming?

Proud Aunt

My brother and his wife welcomed their new daughter into the world yesterday. Grace Madeline was born on May 26 and weighs almost 8 pounds. She's so beautiful and her name describes her perfectly. Her big brothers, Will and Drew, are happy to have her here.

I'll send pictures soon.

Blessings

Katie and Perry are some good friends of ours that we met while Tim was in grad school. After seven years of hoping and praying for a baby, they are expecting a baby boy in July. We celebrated with them last week and spent time praising and thanking God for His gift of a baby in their lives. We went in with some other friends to give them this backpack. (This picture is for you, Amy and Jeff. They loved it.)

On Saturday, we met Katie and Perry at a park for a picnic lunch and bicycle ride. The boys and our friends' dogs loved getting in the water. Wesley is becoming more adventuresome and outgoing. Each day, he adds more words to his vocabulary and wants to try new things. It is so fun to watch him learn and grow.

Preschool

Graham just had his last day of three-year-old preschool. Ms. Trish was his teacher, and she was very special to him. We are very thankful for the good year he had and look forward to him going to the same preschool next year. Several of his little buddies from this year's class will be in his class next year. When I asked him how he felt on the last day of school, he said, "I feel kind of happy and kind of sad." My sentiments exactly.

Happy Birthday, Graham!

Our little guy is four years old!!We were going to have a group of friends meet us at the zoo for a party on Saturday. Because of the rain, the party was moved to our house. Despite the last minute scrambling and the crocodile cake that looked more like a lizard, it all came together and Graham had a great time.

We love you, Graham! We are so proud of you and thankful to have you in our lives. You are a treasure to us.

Camping Trip

Tim and some of the other men from our church planned a camping trip with the kids. We were a little bummed that it rained, but the trip still took place. They just changed the location from a state park to someone's backyard. Our tent is the gigantic one that towers above the others. They pitched the tents under the deck. It was a good thing they were close to the house because a big storm came upon them at 5am. Fortunately, one of the dads woke up and got everyone inside. Amazingly, everyone settled back into their sleeping bags in one big room and went back to sleep until around 8am.

setting up the tents under the deck

kiddos enjoying a break from playing

Graham's favorite part of the weekend was getting to ride his friend's motorized jeep. They had a big backyard so it was a perfect place to ride one.

Mommy wants to know when the next daddy/kid camping trip is. :)

Canoe Trip

A few weeks ago, Tim and my brother took the four boys on a canoe trip for the morning.

Wesley and Drew enjoying lunch

before getting in the canoe-Wesley was not too thrilled.

After some time in the boat, Wesley decided to take a little snooze on Daddy's leg.

Now, I'm having fun!

Drew and Will

Ah...that nap was refreshing!

Notice all of the boys hanging on for dear life!

Uncle Tim and his boys

Cutting and Sewing

Tim and I cut Graham's hair today-yes, ourselves. We decided he needed a low-maintenance haircut for the summer. It's short and it's drastic, but it will grow back. At first, I was kind of shocked, but it's growing on me. Best of all, it's free!

After all of Tim's hardwork in the bathroom, I added a woman's touch with curtains I made. Now, the bathroom is really complete!

I am glad my Husband is not a plumber

After months of sweat, cracked hands, dusty furniture, tools strewn about, late nights, and frustration - Tim is finally through with the bathroom project! Let's just say that I am in no hurry for him to start another project! I do want to say he did a fabulous job, and I feel like I'm in a spa when I'm in my bathroom. It looks awesome!

Emotions

happy

mad

scared

sad

Purple on His Paintbrush

The other day Graham asked me, "Do God and Jesus have paintbrushes?" Perpy would say, "Yes! God's been busy with His paintbrush." We are enjoying the beautiful colors of Spring and praising God for His beauty and creativity.

Can Anyone Relate?

I just looked out the window and what I saw put a smile on my face. Graham was pushing Wesley in the red firetruck Cozy Coupe on the sidewalk in front of our house. (Don't worry-Tim is outside with them.) Both boys were grinning from ear to ear and having a great time with each other.

Lately, it seems that I have been the referee around our house. Wesley goes around saying, "Mine!" while Graham tries to take a toy from him or initiates a wrestling match that Wesley doesn't really want to be a part of. Don't mistake me. They love being together. Wesley's always following Graham around and doing whatever his big brother does. Graham wants to be with Wesley, too. I guess it's a typical sibling relationship. It just seems that whatever one brother has, the other one wants, too.

For the moment, I'll enjoy what I just saw. Brothers happily play together, husband contentedly washes his car, and wife is able to have a few quiet moments to herself.

Oh, gotta go...I think I hear someone crying.

Snack Time

Asleep in the Hall

Tim put Graham to bed the other night. Later that evening, we walked down the hall and found Graham asleep on the floor right by his door. I guess he was afraid he was going to miss something. :)

Easter Morning

A beautiful song that we sing at our church:

Father, we are Your children,

born of your Spirit,

and by Your Spirit we cry

Abba, no longer orphans,

No longer fearful,

Freely we come.

The word of God made flesh,

The hope that lights the world,

He was the sinner's friend;

The Truth, the Life, the Way.

And by His sacrifice,

We're adopted and set free,

He brought us to Your side,

And taught us how to pray.

Into Your Presence,

Perfect Acceptance,

Dwelling secure.

Beautiful mercy,

Drawing us closer,

Calling us yours.

Father, we are Your children,

Born of Your Spirit,

And by Your Spirit we cry

Abba, no longer orphans,

No longer fearful,

Freely we come.