Jared

I Love Him!

Jack who?

Today, Noah introduced me to his imaginary friend, "Jack". The three of us played "Go Fish" together, which was rather interesting. Noah filled me in on some details of his new friend. Noah said,"Jack is 4 yrs. old. He is a little bigger than me. He lives in America. He has a doggy named Sally."

The Invasion

Here he is..... King Nate and his coveted Puddle, weapon in hand, ready to defend.

ALERT!.......Confrontation from intruder.

Oh no, what's this? The intruder intrigued by the puddle, moving in, ready to take over!

"Ahhh...Peace and Harmony in the land of "The Puddle" The End

Joys of Summer

One of life's many pleasures of being a kid. What is a childhood without the joy of running through a sprinkler on a hot summer day!?!

Nate Dogg

WUUUUZZZZZ UUUUPP!?!

Noah's prayer

Noah said a prayer the other morning, and it brought a smile to my face, as so many of his prayers do.
"LORD God, thank you for my legs that I can run, thank you for my elbows, and that I can blink my eyes. Amen"

My little "Artist"

Noah showed me this picture of a bird he drew this morning. I thought that it was so cute, so I decided to share it with all of you!

Nate's happy

We had another great day at the museum. Nate loves the water, he had a great time today. I enjoyed myself as well. I love watching the boys when they are having a good time.

Noah and his girl

Noah and Lydia.
Ahh......young love.

Look what I caught!

Noah came running out of the woods, shouting, "Mommy, Mommy, look what I caught!" This kid is all boy, and I am loving these moments. His little friend that he is holding tightly between his fingers is a little toad. Noah was so proud to have captured him. Breath a sigh of relief knowing that Noah, gently released his little captive back into his habitat, unharmed. I will never forget the look on his face when he came racing toward me with excitement. This was just one of those moments that I was happy to have captured.

Thank me!

The four of us went to see "Ratatioulle", (cute movie by the way). As we were entering the theater, I said to the boys, "Make sure you thank Daddy for taking us to the movies." And Noah quickly replied, " Don't thank Dad, thank me, this was my idea."

Nate's Puddle

I thought I was going to have to get the boys a kiddie pool for the summer.....however, I don't think that it would get much use. Nate has taken to a puddle in our drive way. He loves collecting rocks and throwing them in "his" puddle. It started out as a treat for him after it would rain, but with a bit of nice weather, the puddle would dry up and Nate would just walk around it, looking puzzled, like, "hey where's my puddle?" So, now I just use the hose and fill it up for him. I find it amazing how little things as simple as a puddle capture a child's interest for hours.

To my Dad

Hope you feel better soon Daddy.
I Love you!!!

To My Big Brother

Happy Birthday John!!!

I Love.........

A list of things I love:


God, laughing, hugs, taking walks, sunsets, Noah and Nate's chubby hands, elastic waist bands, camping, being a wife, peanut butter, the old barn, flowers, crying when I feel like it, Autumn leaves, reading to my boys, tickling Jared, taking pictures, looking at pictures, praying with my husband, a star filled night, making new friends and getting close to the one's that I have, jammie days, running at my own pace, golf cart rides with all the kids piled on, strawberries,my parents, rocking Nate, lazy days with nothing to do, teaching my children about God, watching Noah chase butterflies, singing along to worship music, mountain views, the sound of water, having a big brother, canoing, knowing my husband prays for me, hugs from my Dad, the way my Mom still worries about me and tells me when to go bed, chocolate, that my kisses actually make my kids' boo boos feel better, being close with my sisters, the smell of lilac, watching my children play in the rain, making someone smile, being an Aunt, cozy winter days when we are snowed in, reading a verse for the 50th time and learning something new, turtles, when I don't have to shave my legs as much in the winter, waking up beside Jared, being a child of God, Aunt Vi's dessert, when Jared comes home early from work, when Noah tells me that I'm his special girl, when Nate plays with my hair, memories, sound of my boys giggling, the way Jared tells me he loves me with his eyes, sneezing, going home, telling Jared something that he doesn't already know....which doesn't happen often, mountain pies, knowing Jesus as my Savoir, giving my testimony, coloring with my boys, swinging, playing my guitar with Jared, a good nap, rainy days, watching Jared be a wonderful father to our boys, praying for people, doing laundry (just joking), watching Noah ride his bike, remembering my childhood, making someone laugh, being a mother, the way it smells after it rains, the sound of the birds outside our window in the morning, being a mother to Noah and Nathan, being a daughter to two wonderful parents who love their family so much, praying with my children, kissing my kids goodnight, sharing my pictures and thoughts with all who read this blog.

Tractor ride with Pap Pap

One of Noah's favorite things to do when we come home is to ride on the tractor with Pap Pap. However, Nate was less than thrilled as you can tell by his face. Pap Pap must of been driving too crazy for him!

HOME

We have just returned from a trip back "home". What a wonderful time we had. A whole week packed full of family, I couldn't of asked for more, except for maybe a few more days to hang out with the gang. I loved watching Noah and Nate with their cousins. The goodbyes never get any easier, I don't know why I expected them too. However, Jared and I really are very thankful for where God has the four of us right now, knowing we are in His hands. I'm learning patience and contentment, two things that haven't come very easy for me. God has taught me so much about who He has called me to be. I am a work in progress, I have so much growing to do. This is truly a learning experience, and although it can be difficult at times, I can honestly say that I have no regrets of the decision we made to move up here. We really miss our family, and going home reminds us of exactly why we miss them so much. I get a surge of memories that flood my mind while I'm there. I am thankful for where I am from, and that I can go back to that place, and not a whole lot has changed.
While working on this blog, I ran into a challenge. You see, I took over 1000 pictures while we were home, and I am having a little trouble picking out the ones I want to post on this site. (Yes it's 1000, I didn't type in an extra zero by accident) Plus I still need to get permission from other family members that are in the pics other than my kids before I can post them. Yes, photography is an obsession for me. Jared is praising God that we went digital!
Enjoy viewing some of the memories that we made. I will be posting more over the next several days to truly get a feel for the joy we experience being home.

"Cow"boys

Everyone back home knows where this picture has been taken, and we have all rode the cows......some just don't like to admit it.

Enjoying the River

We had a great time up at the river....brought back some memories.

Bring on the Rain!

A little bit of rain doesn't stop my two boys from enjoying their time outside. They love to play in the rain, and I love watching them.......looks like fun, sometime I might just join them.....why not!

Corn Boy!

Corn Husker

Corn Eater