Beach Bliss

A few weeks back, our family went on a beach trip!  Oh my goodness, I LOVE THE BEACH!!!  We had a wonderfully relaxing time and soaked up the family time.  It was such a blessing to be able to share this vacation with Mema and PaPa.  Here are a few pictures from our amazing vacation.

I am so grateful to be able to enjoy a gorgeous beach vacation with my fun, crazy, wild, wacky, loving family!  Now, I'm looking forward to the next getaway!!

Brain Dump

I haven't posted in a while, so I thought I'd do a quick brain dump in bullet form.

*These two boys wear me out EVERY. SINGLE. DAY.  Whew!  Raising boys is fun, but it is not for the faint of heart!

*We only have a few weeks left of summer, then it's back to school--

EIGHTH grade for this guy and I cannot believe it!

and back to preschool two half-days a week for this one

but never fear, this little one gets another year at home with his Mama!  

*Jacob turns 13 in two months.  We will officially be parenting a teenager and yes, we covet your prayers now!!!  :)

*Our family vacation is just around the corner and I cannot wait for some quality family time at the beach!  Woohoo!!

*Vacation bonus:  Richard Barlow Photography will be taking some family pictures for us while we are at the beach!  Yay, for super talented Uncle Rich!  I LOVE family photos.  Our home looks like a gallery for Richard Barlow Photography and I like it!

*Matt and I are facilitating a small group at our church this fall with a focus on blended/step-families.  I am so excited about this opportunity to minister to other families like us.  I'm praying God will move in a mighty way for all involved in this class and that He will get all the glory!!

*We've really enjoyed the pool this summer.  Jacob enjoys hanging out with his cousins and the little boys are having a blast jumping and sliding.  Abel is quite independent as long as he's wearing his "swimmies."  And, Eli is starting to swim without his "swimmies," which is super exciting for me, the former swimmer, to watch.   Here's a clip of Eli going down the slide!

*Baseball season will start up before long.  This will be our first season with two boys playing.  It'll be interesting juggling two schedules!!  Jacob is moving up to the "big leagues" and Eli will start tee-ball.  We even scored a pair of cleats and a pair of little baseball pants for Eli at the consignment sale.  We're ready!  

*Speaking of the consignment sale, Kids Exchange was last week and, oh my gracious, we outdid ourselves.  We bought 107 items, but got great deals and all three boys are clothed through the winter.

Needless to say, we're busy here!  And, with that said, I'm off to bake muffins with my little guys!

Giving!

Not to toot our own horn, but Matt and I have come to the conclusion that we are both great gift givers.  With that said, there is a small difference.  Matt's gifts to me are always just what I need (or want) and super functional.  My gifts are just what he needs (or wants) and super functional, too, but mine usually have a sentimental and/or crafty component, too!  I love all the planning and preparation.  Giving gifts to Matt is one of my favorite things to do!!

For Father's Day this year, the boys made their daddy a handprint family tree.  And can I just say that Jacob has become a man-child.  His hands and feet are huge!  When did that happen???  Sorry, where was I?  Oh yes, handprint family tree--Matt loved it!  It really is super cute and I'll try to add a photo of it soon.  

He also got this...

Nothing says "Happy Father's Day" like socks (and ties).  Of course, I couldn't just give Matt plain old socks.  I had to step it up a bit, so I rolled the socks into "roses," added lollipop sticks, and put them in a bud vase!

FUN!

And this is the gift from me...

 I filled a candy jar with his favorites (Reese's Cups and Dark Chocolate Hershey's Kisses), and then made it more personal.  I bought the little blank circle stickers that you would use to price items at a yard sale.  On each sticker I wrote a reason that I love him and then stuck them to the bottom of the candies and added a label to the jar!  Now, every time he opens a candy, he gets a little love note!  :)

See, Pinterest isn't a waste of time!!

Dads

Happy

Father's

Day!!

I love you all and am so thankful for you!!

"The one who lives with integrity is righteous; his children who come after him will be happy."

Proverbs 20:7 HCSB

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And, because it occurred to me as I was putting this post together that my Mother's Day post was inadvertently missing someone (oops!!)...Happy Mother's Day to my sweet mother-in-law.  For all the happiness you've brought to Pappy and to this family, we love you!

King's Kids Day

A few weeks ago, our church had a "play day" for toddlers and preschoolers.  We invited Jacob's mom, his other siblings, and PaPa and Mema.  We had a blast riding the train, jumping in jump houses, getting tattoos, playing games, watching Hubba Bubba the clown, and eating hot dogs together!  

Niki, Eli, and Will riding the train together.  I got to hold sweet Finley while they took their train ride.

Mema and her buddy, Abel!

 Abel got a tattoo.  My boys love tattoos!

Miss Finley had fun exploring in the bounce house.

Abel says, "cheese!"

Will had a blast shooting hoops!

The whole gang (minus me)--Mema and Abel, PaPa and Eli, Niki, Finley, and Will.

Eli was enthralled with Hubba Bubba.

Abel and Niki hanging out and watching the show.

 Hubba Bubba kept us all entertained!

 Eli was chosen to be a helper.  He was beyond thrilled!  I just love his little hands on his hips--so growny!

Magic!

I am so thankful for our fabulous church family and our children's ministry team.  This was such a great day for all of us!

Strawberry Picking!

A week ago, we headed out for some family time in the strawberry fields.  We didn't pick a ton of strawberries, but we had a ton of fun together!

Daddy helped Abel find the red ones to pick.  Abel preferred to just pull at the plants and throw whatever came off into the bucket!

Eli should be weighed on the way in and weighed on the way out and charged for the difference!!

Jacob pitched in and picked quite a few berries!

The little boys had fun running down the strawberry rows.  My boys really do know how to have fun no matter where they are!

Egg Hunt

Over the Easter season we celebrated with multiple egg hunts.  I love how the egg (and spring in general) reminds us of new life which is exactly what we were offered through Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection. I snapped a few pictures while the little boys played and hunted Easter eggs.  I even got Jacob to smile for the camera!

And yes friends, that is indeed a Walmart bag.  We're fancy like that! 

I hope your Easter was full of fun and the joy that only Jesus gives!