Surprise!

Surprise!

Number four is on the way;
A new baby will be here in May.

April showers will bring May flowers,
and a new baby to shower.

A girl or a boy?
Either one will bring us great joy!

Our family will finally feel complete,
when baby number four
arrives at our door.

We’re busy preparing for baby’s birth,
while baby is getting ready for life on earth.

We can’t wait to meet baby number four;
We can’t wait to have one more!

Cast your vote...will we be welcoming a new baby boy or a baby girl this May? Only two weeks until we know!

Santa Visit

We went to an outdoor light display at a nearby park this weekend and even got to visit with Santa. Owen was fearless as he walked right up to Santa, sat on his lap, and told him that he wanted a Nerf gun for Christmas before Santa could even ask.

Trenton's 10th birthday

Trenton celebrated his 10th birthday with a laser tag party. He and ten friends played three games of laser tag stopping only to grab a donut and open presents. You can see by Trenton's sweaty hair that it was pretty intense.

Trenton chose to have donuts at his party instead of a cake because it was a morning party and donuts are one of his favorite treats.

I love this picture because you can see Owen in the middle of the present opening. He had to inspect every present Trenton received. Trenton's favorite present was a Nerf gun.

While Trenton and his friends didn't seem too impressed by the visit of the Laser Kraze robot, Ashleigh and Owen couldn't get enough of him.

While the big kids played laser tag, Owen and I hung out in the arcade. Owen loves motorcycles, so this was a favorite spot for him.

Owen traded in his tickets for a vampire whistle. He's too cute to be scary.

Surprisingly, Owen is very good at table hockey. He could play for hours.

A shot of Ashleigh being Ashleigh. She tried to play laser tag with the big kids, but got scared when she realized it was completely dark inside.

I'm a Mom!

I went to school to help Ashleigh's teacher yesterday and saw this hanging outside the classroom. Last week was career day and the children were given the chance to write about their parents' careers. Some of the other students' papers included "My mom is a teacher, My mom is a vet, and My mom is a doctor." Then, there was Ashleigh's, "My mom is a mom." How can something so simple be so powerful and speak so much of the importance of my job? I am a Mom!! I am grateful to be able to raise my children and be involved in every part of their life.

Jack-o-Lanterns

Happy Halloween! The kids each designed their pumpkins this year. Ashleigh loves her's because it has a big smile just like her. Trenton really likes the scar he put on his and wanted to make sure I got it in the picture. I love Owen's minature pumpkin.

Super Saturday

I decided to treat the kids to an extra special Saturday this past weekend while Nathan was away at Scout camp. We started the day by heading downtown to the Children's Museum. We could spend all day there. Notice my kids sitting at the bottom of the fountain pool that is dry for winter...they look so tiny next to the huge museum that used to be a bustling train station.

Owen was too scared to sit on top of the camel. It was very realistic.

Trenton found some friends to help him build this magnificent castle. He worked on it a very long time.

Ashleigh is sitting inside the castle that she built next to Trenton's.

Owen loves the water tables at the museum. He loves to connect the pipes together to change the direction of the water.

This is another favorite spot in the museum for Owen. Whenever I mention going to the museum, this is the part he talks about. He loves the hundreds and hundreds of balls to play with.

Super Saturday, Part 2

After Owen's nap on Saturday, we boarded the Pumpkin Patch Express on the LM&M Railroad a few miles from our home. We took a 45 minute train ride to a farm where we got pumpkins, walked through a corn maze, ate yummy fall treats, and petted some farm animals. After spending an hour at the farm, the train took us back on another 45 minute train ride. We had a blast to say the least!

Owen loves trains so riding a real train was like heaven to him. He started glowing as soon as he saw the train. He sat in his seat the entire 45 minutes each way, which is very unlike him. He is a very active little boy.

Owen was so serious once we boarded the train. I think he couldn't believe he was actually on a train and was little scared of all the noise it made, but he loved it all at the same time. He sat with his arms folded for a long time as he took everything in.

Pumpkins at the farm the train took us to. Everyone got a free pumpkin, which made the kids' day.

Ashleigh loved this little pony at the farm. She was so sweet to him.

Our Country Band

Nathan brought the kids some souvenirs home from a recent work trip to Nashville. They now each have their own harmonica and country western hat. It was surprising how much they all loved them. It took Owen a while to figure out how to play his harmonica and he kept trying to trade his with Trenton or Ashleigh because he thought his was broken. It took him two days, but he can now play it and realizes his isn't broken afterall.

Flag football

Trenton has been enjoying playing flag football this fall with his dad as his coach. Trenton prefers playing defense.

Here is Trenton's only time this season with the ball as he usually only plays defense.

Uncle Adam's Wedding

Nathan's youngest brother got married this past weekend in Peoria. I think my children look so sweet in their pink and black wedding colors.

Owen was Adam & Missy's ringbearer, although he chickened out for the actual act, but he still looked cute in his minature tux.
He loves his ringbearer football. There couldn't have been a more fitting gift for him.Owen didn't really want his picture taken in his tux either, so I had to catch a few shots when I could. I never did get a perfect picture of him, but I guess he is only 2.

Ashleigh dancing with her newly married uncle at the reception.

Owen dancing with Adam's new wife, Missy, at the reception.

The "little girls" got to try and catch a bouquet of suckers thrown by Missy.

Silly cousin time at the rehearsal dinner.

The kids found fun in blowing out the candles at everyone's table after dinner was over. It's the simple things in life that bring happiness!

Family Favorite

We spent a lot of time this summer at The Beach Waterpark just minutes from our house. We feel incredibly blessed to live so close to a fun waterpark. Trenton knows the park inside out and is our tour guide every time we go. He can go on every water slide in the park and cannot wait for Ashleigh to get big enough to go with him. Owen begs to go whenever he sees "Beach Waterpark" advertisements on TV. It is definitely a family favorite!


The last few times we went this summer Owen was brave enough to go on the Lazy River in the kiddie area with Ashleigh. It is a minature version of the real one.

My heart is stopped as I tell myself to breathe while watching little Owen float away without me to protect him. He is so brave...more brave than Mom. He loves being big enough to go on the water rides by himself.

This is our favorite part of the park. This pool is heated like a hot tub and is fun for the whole family. We always start and finish in this pool.

Owen spends most of the time in the kiddie area trying to stop the water jets from shooting up. He loves to stand over them and push the water down with his hand.

The "hot tub."

My little man!

The Sweetest Words Ever

After coming inside this morning after playing outside for a couple of hours together, Owen said to me, "You make me so happy, Mom!" Word for word...and he's only two. We are enjoying our one-on-one time together now that Ashleigh and Trenton are at school.

One tired boy!

Over the weekend, we took a family bike ride at a nearby park and then let the kids play for a couple of hours on the playground. This meant Owen missed his nap. We thought it would be fine because he misses it every Sunday for church and does okay, but a little while after we got home I noticed he was really quiet. When I went to find him I found him asleep at the front door. He was one tired baby...although he doesn't look much like a baby anymore in this picture...he is getting huge!

First Day of School

My 1st grader! Can you tell by her smile how excited she was to go to school as a first grader?

My 4th grader! Holy cow...I am getting old!

Owen really wanted to go to school with Ashleigh. He even wore his backpack to the bus stop. He was so heartbroken when Ashleigh got on without him.

Trenton at the bus stop with our neighbors. We mustn't get too close to the girls!

End of Summer

I can't believe summer vacation is officially over for us. We have had a really fun summer, but I didn't take many pictures for some reason. We went to the water park almost every week and the Children's museum several times, but no pictures! We also had lots of fun playdates with friends and neighbors. I really wish we had another month together because everyone has really been getting along well. Owen and I are really going to miss Ashleigh and Trenton. Luckily, we will be visiting them often as I busy myself in PTA once again. If only I could figure out a way to get paid for my hours at school...but then it wouldn't be nearly as fun!
On our final day of summer vacation, we decided to pick red raspberries at a nearby farm so that I could make some more yummy jam.
The raspberries were really hidden in the farm's overgrown field, but we found enough for jam.

Julie, you would have loved this pig. When he saw us coming he came running to us and climbed right over the log by the fence. He loved being petted and talked to. We thought of Aunt Julie, which made us miss her...it's time for a visit Auntie!

We got to see plenty of animals running around...including four crazy roosters who were roaming around unfenced. They were all mixed up cock-a-doodling every five minutes which Owen mimicked.

Running back to get some ice cream with our baskets full of berries!