Our Little Family

Merry Christmas

2009-12-25T14:41:00.004-07:00

Merry Christmas...from our family to yours.
Hope everyone's holiday is filled with great memories made together with friends and family. Remember the true reason for the season!!!

Favorite Photo Friday

2009-12-18T16:41:00.002-07:00

Ok, so even if I don't get to posting that much I guess you can always count on a photo friday..lol.
Here is Luke and the "little" snowman we built. The snow was pretty powdery..we had to build a big mountain and then kinda sculpt it. There is not much left of him today, after a lot of rain and some warmer temperatures. We are hoping to get some more snow just in time for Christmas!!!

Favorite Photo Friday

2009-12-11T10:23:00.006-07:00

Just one of the many pictures of Luke and Drew together. Amazing how much they have both changed since May 09 when this photo was take.

I was looking back at some of my old post from the years past and saw that me and a few of my bloggers gals used to do "favorite photo friday" I thought I might start doing it again, cause it was kinda fun!! If anyone else want to join in that would be great!! I love looking at everyones pictures!!!

First Snow

2009-12-08T10:38:00.001-07:00

Happy Thanksgiving!!!!

2009-11-24T22:10:00.002-07:00

Just wanted to wish everyone a wonderful thanksgiving this year. We are headed out of town for the weekend to spend the holiday with my family. I am really looking forward to it. I have not spent Thanksgiving with my family in over 5 years. I have so much to be thankful for this year and my heart overflows with joy when I think of all that the Lord has blessed us with.

Hope everyone has a safe and happy holiday!!!

Tales from the pantry..

2009-11-10T08:36:00.003-07:00

So in our new house we have this great big pantry and I LOVE it!!! It give me so much storage for food and lot of other things too. But I am not the only one who loves the pantry, the boys really love it too!!! They know there are lots of goodies in there, even Drew has learned this. So here are two little tales from the pantry.

So Drew is really getting smart and understanding little bits of what we say to him. I will ask him if he is hungry and if he wants some "bites" then he will make his way over to the pantry stopping only to look back to see if I am following him. He stands there waiting for me and knocks on the door. I pick him up and put him in his highchair and go to the pantry to get a snack for him. You never know what he will be in the mood for. One day something is his favorite thing and the next day he will not even take a bite. So I look in the pantry and take something out and show it to him. He shakes his head no, I try something else and he shakes his no again. I keep looking and keep showing until I get a happy face and him reaching his hand out for the snack he wants. He is quite demanding of his food, but it is also very cute. It is the start of him learning to communicate with us.

Now on to Luke's story from the pantry...

So we keep the goodies like fruit snacks, granola bars and other things like that up high in the pantry. Just to not make them not as easy to reach for Luke. He never really gets in there without asking first and then we get him a snack. Plus he still has trouble figuring out how to open the packaging. So one night I am laying in bed about to doze of when I hear a noise in the kitchen. I open my eyes and think, ummm...what was that. Of course I have to go check it out. If anyone knows me I do not play off sounds at night. I have a bad imagination and I always have to check it out to let my mind have some peace. So I head out to the kitchen and see the pantry door wide open. Then I look to the hallway and see Luke coming around the corner with little yellow chair. He sees me and freezes right in his tracks. I ask him what he is doing, and of course he say, Uhhh nothing. I tell him to put his chair way and get back into bed. I go into his room and ask him again what he was doing. He said he was hungry and was wanting to get a snack. I was pretty surprised to find him up at night by himself. He usually never leaves his bed even if he does wake up. If he wants something he always just yells for me. I think he is getting a little braver...lol. I guess I should just be happy he was thoughtful enough to get a chair and that he didn't just climb the shelves.

Well hope you enjoyed enjoyed the tales...just some funny things to remember a few years from now.

Fall Family Pictures

2009-10-28T13:38:00.003-06:00

Pumpkin Patch

2009-10-23T09:52:00.005-06:00

Here are some pictures from our trip to the pumpkin patch the other day..I took some of my favorites and edited them. The boys had a blast and it was a really nice evening!!

Getting settled in...

2009-10-14T08:46:00.006-06:00

Saying good-night to Luke in his new room

Here are a bunch of pictures of us working on the new place before we moved in...Guess the pictures are actually in reverse order. I am never good at uploading pictures in the right order on here. We had a lot of work to do before we moved in. We painted, clean, and shampooed the carpets. Doesn't sound like much of a to-do list, but it took longer than expected. I wasn't able to help as much as I thought mostly because Drew wanted to be held almost every minute of the day...lol. And we all came down with some kind of stomach virus and were down for a few days. But we are finally starting to feel settled in and are LOVING our new home. We still have some on going projects and unpacking, but we are enjoying it and looking forward to our first winter and the holidays in our first place!!!

First dinner in the new place...we ate ALOT of fast food that week..lol

Luke out front

The sky the night we moved in.

Moving in the furniture!!!

The boys staying busy playing.

Luke helping paint his room!!! He was super excited!!!

The first night of painting.

Drew helping...

Thanks for all your help Amy!!!

More pictures to come, once the house is all put together!!

Fun Birthday Picture

2009-09-11T12:07:00.002-06:00

Happy 1st Birthday Drew!!!

2009-09-10T22:15:00.008-06:00

Here is the first picture taken of Drew right after he was born. Still one of my favorite photos even though it was taken with my cell phone camera. He was definitely born with those chubby checks and still has them today!!

Singing happy birthday to him...he was pretty excited. We couldn't put the cupcake on his high chair because he kept trying to grab it.

What a little cutie...he loved the frosting!!!

He was really into it!!!

Ok...I am done.

The past year with Drew has been so full of joy and wonderful memories!!! I have enjoyed watching him grow and develop to where he is now. I have loved watching his eyes light up when he sees his big brother. We have been so blessed and I am thankful for the family that the Lord has given us!!!

It is hard to believe that it has been a year since the wonderful miracle of his birth. I still remember all that we were going through at the time of his birth. We found out the day before he was born that he had turned completely breech. We were devastated and all the memories of Lily's birth came rushing back and I thought I might lose him too. I remember going to bed that night praying that God would allow him to turn and I felt so completely helpless and just tried to lay it all down at the Lord's feet. He surely was merciful and he turned Drew back to the right position over night. He allowed me to have a speedy labor and a beautiful baby boy. I don't ever remember being so thankful for anything when I heard Drew cry....
Thank you Lord for your amazing love and compassion and healing for our family!!!

We did just a small little thing for Drew tonight, and his real party will be on Sunday with some or our close friends. I am looking forward to it!! Also wanted to report that Drew has started taking some steps and will probably be walking in no time. Well it was a wonderful first year of Drew's life and I look forward to what the next year has to hold..

Remembering my Angel on her 2nd Birthday

2009-09-06T08:14:00.003-06:00

The Broken Chain

We little knew that morning that God was going to call your name.
In life we loved you dearly, in death we do the same.
It broke our hearts to lose you. You did not go alone.
For part of us went with you, the day God called you home.
You left us peaceful memories, your love is still our guide.
And though we cannot see you, you are always at our side.
Our family chain is broken, and nothing seems the same.

But as God calls us one by one, the chain will link again.

This is one of my favorite poems that I have found since Lily's passing and I woke up thinking about it yesterday on her birthday. It brought me a lot of comfort. It is hard to believe it has been two years and I sometimes still wonder what our lives would be like if she was here now. But then I look at our lives now and it is hard to picture it any other way. I am thankful for how far the Lord has brought us through this and all his blessing on us through this trail. He has surely been good to us. I still miss my little girl, but as the poem says "the chain will link again"!!!

Under Contract!!!

2009-08-27T21:45:00.006-06:00

So we are under contract on OUR FIRST PLACE here in Idaho. We are SO EXCITED!!! It is hard to believe that it is really happening. Joe and I will be married 8 years next month and it is something we have always looked forward too. The day we could have our own home. I am so thrilled and humbled to have the blessing of a nice home to raise the boys in and a nice little yard for them to grow up in. It warms my heart just thinking about the memories that are to be made in the future!!! I feel so unworthy and so thankful for this opportunity to own our own home. We are thanking the Lord for working everything out for us thus far. Part of me is still nervous that something is going to come up to make it fall through..but Lord know and I am trying to leave it all with him. Thanks to everyone too who has helped us along in this process...couldn't have done it without you!!!

Dining room and kitchen...boy's rooms off to the left.

Bonus room above the garage....What neat extra room to have!! We have lots of ideas for this room!!

View of the living room from the dining room.

Luke checking out the kitchen.

Luke's room with a neat window seat.

Big hallway closet...there is one on the other side of the hallway next to the other bedroom...Lots of storage!!!

Drew's room

Boy's bathtub

Boy's bathroom

Laundry room

Hallway and stairs to bonus room. Master is the door to the left, and laundry room and garage is the door to the right.

Nice open floor plan. (The master, bonus room, laundry and garage are off to the right.)

So just wanted to share pictures with everyone...just remember us in your prayers that everything goes smoothly and we get through closing, which is set for September 28 the day before my 28th b-day :-)

First Day of Kindergarten!!

2009-08-25T11:48:00.004-06:00

So Luke had his first day of Kindergarten this morning...He was so excited about it last night that he could hardly settle down for bed.

Here he is out in front of the school. It is the oldest school in the district, but I think it is a pretty neat looking building.

Here he is eating breakfast...all his favorite stuff. French toast and chocolate milk. They provide free breakfast to all the students. I thought that was pretty cool!

Playing in the classroom. They didn't do much today. It was just orientation for the parents and students. Think we were only there for about an hour.

Luke wanted to stay longer and play...he will have plenty of time for that. Hopefully he realizes it is a little different than pre-school. Not as much play time and more learning time...lol.

Standing out in front of his classroom. Room number 3.

Tomorrow the real thing starts. We just found out that a boy in his class lives right across the street from us. He was pretty excited to have a new friend close by and a buddy to ride the bus with. Too bad we might only be living in this place a few months before we buy a house and change schools. But it will be nice in the meantime.

Showing off my pearly whites!!!

2009-08-24T22:02:00.002-06:00

Well it took awhile, but he finally has some teeth!!! 4 of them so far. He has had them for a little while now, but have just now been able to get a picture of them. I think he looks pretty cute and it looks like he will have a space between his two front teeth. Just like his big brother.

Checking out the new senery!!!

2009-08-18T12:41:00.004-06:00

Well we have been in Nampa, ID for almost a month now. We are pretty much totally unpacked besides the few boxes that we are waiting to unpack until we (Lord-willing) buy a house. I am feeling pretty comfortable getting my way around town and learning the area. Sunday afternoon we took a drive to Lake Lowell. It is just outside of Nampa and only about a 10 minute drive. Here are a few pics...it was a beautiful day. (pics are from my cell phone, so they are not the best pics in the world)

Walking along the lake..

Luke looking for rocks to throw in the water.

Pausing for a minute to give me a smile!!

Drew checking out the water!!

My boyz...

Walking to the shore.

Pictures of a lot of "Firsts"

2009-08-05T12:59:00.003-06:00

Boys first bath in the new place..(after ALOT of bathroom scrubbing)

Well we made it to Idaho. It has been a busy week and a half since we have been here, but we are starting to feel settled in. Here are a few pics of us in the new apartment. I will post some more when I get some pictures of the rooms all put together.

First family dinner

Drew's first morning.

Luke's first morning.

Big Changes....

2009-07-24T10:11:00.003-06:00

Well if you can't tell by the pictures...we are moving. And moving soon....this weekend. Some of you already know this news but other might not, so thought I better get on here and post something before we actually make the move...lol. We are moving to Nampa, ID. Joe has been up there for almost 2 weeks now working and the boys and I have been home hanging out and packing!!!
Joe's work has been terribly slow this year in construction and it has been pretty trying. Joe has been wanting to be able to get out of construction and maybe start a career in something else that is more steady. We have been praying about it for a while and praying about possible making a change. Then Joe got offered a great job in ID and he was so thankful for the opporunity!!! He went up to ID and started working and looking for a place. He found a nice duplex to rent for a few months and then we are hoping to buy a house...Lord-willing. Joe sent me picures of the new place and it looks really cute and it has 3 bedrooms!!! I am so excited to have an extra bedroom. Not really extra, but one more room then we have here..lol. We were going to be in CO till the end of the month, but the landlord said we could move in a week early and I am ready to not be staying by myself anymore!!! So the big move is this weekend!!
So to all you bloggers in CO, so sorry if I didn't get to say goodbye in person, and all you bloggers in ID....we will be seeing you soon!!!!

Hanging at the pool

2009-07-16T09:50:00.003-06:00

My good friend Heidi and I. She came to visit me from WA for a week!!!

Snack time for Drew

and Luke (Mom and Dad if you see this post..doesn't this picture remind you of Matt when he was little)

Water gun....

Luke and his noodle.

Drew and his floatie.

What a beautiful day...we had a blast!!!

10 months old

2009-07-14T10:08:00.005-06:00

So Drew is now 10 months old...He is doing great and is starting to be a busy little boy....He is crawling and pulling up on everything and I am sure over the next couple of month he will be walking...YIKES!!!

Luke and Drew are now officially roommates....Sleeping arrangements have been changing the past few weeks. Some night they sleep in the room together, some night Drew ends up back in our room, and some night we move Luke onto the floor in our room to help Drew sleep better...lol.
The boys love hanging out and playing in the room together...Drew is always crawling down the hallway to check out what Luke is doing and steal his toys. So far Luke like all the attention from Drew and has been sharing his toys well. We'll see how long that last...lol.
Well that is my short update on the boys...

He crawls....

2009-06-29T23:04:00.003-06:00

This isn't from today, but was the only pic I could find of him in a close to crawling position...lol. Plus it is just too cute. I got his first crawl on video and am going to try to get it uploaded and posted on here.

So Drew offically started crawling today. He has been trying so hard now for weeks and was just going backwards and he was getting so frustrated. I kept saying...any day now he is going to get it!!! Well he got it today!! He is still learning and moving at a slow crawl, but I have a feeling it is going to get really crazy soon.

Luke's swimming lessons

2009-06-09T13:18:00.005-06:00

Pictures are in random order from over the last 2 weeks

Circle time before the lessons start

Jumping in the water.

Front floats..

Big kicks!!!!

Waiting in line for the lesson to start.

Back float in the deep end!!

Joe and Drew, just watching.

Getting ready to go in the water!!

Luke is in swimming lessons for the first time. This is his 2nd week of it and has been really enjoying it and progressing. He is in level one and I am hoping to put him in level 2 after this session. All the sessions are already filled up for the summer, but we are #1 on the waiting list..so hopefully he will get in. Here are a few pics...He also started T-ball last week and I will get some pics up of that once I take some..lol.

Just a boy thing????

2009-05-26T22:05:00.003-06:00

So have a question for you moms with boys. How long did it take your boys to stop going tinkle during the night? Luke is 5 1/2 now and still has to wear a pull up at night. He will go in spurts of not going at night. Sometime for up to two weeks, but then he starts again. We have tried differnet things like no drinks after dinner, going a bunch of time before bed, and I used to even wake him up at night to go. I only did this when I was prego with Drew cause I was up every night to potty and thought he might as well too. Sometimes that worked, but other times he would still go after I woke up him.
He has been potty trained during the day since he was like 2 1/2 and I haven't really given a lot of thought to the night time thing until like the last year or so. I figured he would just grow out of it and eventually get it. I still kinda feel this way, but then sometimes I start to wonder. He is a pretty hard sleeper and doesn't wake up to much. I don't think he will actually wake up to go. I think he will just have to learn to wait till morning. I heard somewhere that there is a hormone in our body that allows us to create less urine at night and until you have enough of that hormone it make it difficult to not go at night. Has anyone else heard that? I have also heard that it take boys longer than girls. Anyone have any tips or advice? I am not super concerned, but would be nice to be able to stop buying pull-ups.

Great yard sale find....

2009-05-22T22:45:00.006-06:00

So I got this Evenflo car seat for Drew today at a yard sale for $15. He won't be using it for a few months. He is still using his rear facing infant seat, but I know the next few months are going to go by fast and I will need one. I have been searching on craigslist and also pricing new ones. I was surprised at how much they were. We used a hand-me-down one last time for Luke. They are just as much or more as the price we paid for Drew's infant travel system with the stroller. So, my friend Janaun called me today from a yard sale saying she found a car seat I might like. I drove over there and checked it out. They were asking $20, but I got it for $15. Great deal...I took it home and cleaned it up and it looks almost brand new. I love yard sales!!!

Luke's Soccer Season

2009-05-22T12:51:00.004-06:00

So we put Luke into soccer this year. It was co-ed for 5 and 6 year olds. It was his first experience with organized sports. It was a blast. It was pretty mellow and laid back in their age group. Which was nice. Just trying to get them used to the sport and learn the basics. They had practice two days a week and games on Saturday. They did really good. I think they only lost like one or two games, they won a few, and tied a few. Luke made one goal and really enjoyed playing goalie too. He did great and was fun to watch. He did get sick one week and missed out on a few practices and two games. Here are a few of the fun pictures we took from his games and practices!!! He is getting ready to start T-ball and also swimming lessons in a few weeks. I am loving this stage with Luke and watching him get involved in activies...it is really fun!