Bekah's One-Liner

Yesterday, my mom came and got the girls to run some errands with her and was serenaded by Emilie and Bekah during the trip. At one point, mom asks, "What more could a grandma ask for?" And Bekah replies, "Another song?"

And I might get some birthday pictures and updates up here soon. But don't hold your breath.

I Think She'd Say This is her Favorite Present EVER!

Bekah sure loves her little kitty! Smokey got out the other night and Bekah was in tears as we were trying to get her to come back in. :)

Oh, and Bekah got her hair chopped off the other day. She says it's a little too short, like a "boy's haircut" (oops!), but I've reassured her that it'll grow back. :) Next time, we won't go quite as short!

...but boys seem to be much harder on these glasses!

Well, Nathan's only had his glasses for a little over a month and has managed to significantly scratch his first pair and break his back-up pair. Pair number 3 is in the mail. I almost ordered 2 pairs when I ordered the third, but thought I should wait until his re-check in November to make sure his prescription doesn't change again. I'm rethinking that now. :/

75% Glasses Rate

We're shooting for a perfect 100 before we're done. :) Have a feeling Nathan's glasses are going to be harder to keep from breaking. :/ His back-up pair is already in the mail. (The second pic is intentionally a little farther back...thought I'd show off the new window covering as well.) :)

Emilie's "Wharf"

So Emilie forgot to watch where she was running...and ran smack into the side of the deck. Brad was pretty impressed with the welt on her forehead!

Cleaning Out the Car

Sam, helping vacuum the van while we were still on Robinson.

The Old Purple/Yellow Room

We needed to re-paint this room before the renters moved in, so we let them pick the colors. I didn't think to mention, "not red". I strongly dislike painting red (had to put like 7 coats on the walls flanking the fireplace in that house). But I liked the way it turned out -- and it only took 2 coats. :)

Our Climbing Tree at the "New" House

Do you see anything in this tree? The kids have been making their way up, limb by limb. As for the unpacking...we're getting there! The kitchen's mostly just down to those odds and ends that don't seem to have a logical home and the rest of the house is still a work in progress.

Crescent Drive (Both Floors!)

Figured I'd better do this now before we move in 8 days...or it might be awhile before I'd get around to it again! It's a lot different from the last video -- and I included the upstairs this time, too.

Nana and Papa Got a Pool

And the kids couldn't be more thrilled! A few weeks back I bought the kids some ice cream cones as a treat and Emilie said, "This is the third best day of my life!" This made me wonder what the first and second best days were...so I asked her. "The first best was when Grandma and Grandpa got their pool and the second best was the first day we got to swim in it." I guess she was just ranking the previous week or two. :) Anyways, these pictures are from that day -- their first swim in Nana and Papa's pool.

Sam's Actual Birthday

The older kids were going to a VBS the night of Sam's birthday that ended at 8:30. I didn't plan on Sam attending until we got there and they said the program was for 3 and up...and Sam did just technically turn 3 at 12:22 that afternoon...So, he stayed. But I worried about him the whole time -- or, more accurately, I worried about his teacher the whole time. :/ Apparently it went well and Daddy was ready and waiting with his ice cream birthday cake when we got home (Sam L-O-V-E-S ice cream). Can hardly believe this kid is 3 already!

Sam's "Extended" Family Birthday Party

I say "extended" because only the grandparents were here and he has a whole lot more extended family than that! He had a great time opening his gifts and I was glad he didn't seem to mind that it was thrown together last minute. Sam says, "Thanks for the gifts!"

Big Tractor

Sam was captivated by the excavator across the street. I'm sure he would've walked over and touched it if I hadn't been watching.

Dance Recital

The girls had a lot of fun at their end-of-year recital on the first Sunday of June. Emilie's did a tap and ballet routine and especially enjoyed the tap. Bekah did ballet and her movements were pristine.

Nathan's Last Day of Pre-School

Nathan really enjoyed Pre-School at the YMCA this year. It was a good fit for him, as he wasn't quite ready to sit through our school-work every afternoon and yet, wasn't taking a nap anymore either.

Great Grandpa w/ About 1/2 of the Great-Grandkids

All of us inside were wondering what had happened to them all -- and there they were, just swinging on the deck. :)

Fresh Air + Green Grass to Play in + Minimal Sleep =

Sam, the second morning up at Brad's grandparents' farm near Richland Center in mid-May. I was ready with camera in hand for a plop into the cereal bowl, but that never happened (although it looked utterly possible).

Sam's Fred Flintstone Bike

Emilie *FINALLY* Lost Her First Tooth!

After many months of having a couple of pretty wiggly teeth (and an appointment pending for professional removal), Emilie finally allowed me to pluck one of her teeth out this afternoon! I pulled it out and she said, "Mom, you're bleeding!". It was her tooth, of course, but she hadn't even felt it come out!

Kitchen at New House

Some pics of the "under construction" kitchen at the house on Crescent. I really like how it's turning out!

Our House is Officially FOR SALE!

Jay made a huge sign for us (thank you!) and we staked it in the yard last night! My Mom made a flyer for us and I'm going to Staples quick here in a minute to make some color copies and put them out with the sign. I also started a blog just for the house -- I added it to my "Blogs I Visit" link to the left. Praying we're able to sell soon (we already moved most of our fall/winter things over to the house on Crescent!).

New Bathroom

Shower tile still needs to go in, along w/ some other odds and ends -- but it looks a whole lot different than it did a week ago. And so much better, too! Thanks for all your hard work, Dad! :)

Helping Grandpa

Sam mimicking what he's seen Grandpa do the past few days. He's such a copy cat. :)

Bathroom

The alley bathroom before -- Dad and Brad moved the tub under the window and took down that wall -- it looks so much bigger!

The whole reason I started posting tonight was to post these pics...but I figured I'd better get in the older pics first or they might never make the blog! So here they are -- the second one is pretty much how the bathroom still looks now. We should be painting tomorrow and tiling on Friday (and by "we", I guess I mostly mean "Dad"). :) Everything else on the "to-do" list is coming along -- slowly, but coming along none the less. Hoping to have a "for sale" sign in the yard by May 14th!

New Clothes!

The girls are always SOOOO excited to get hand-me-downs from their cousins and this time was no exception! Here they are modeling some of their new finds. Emilie's really been into horse stuff since she knows her cousins Anna and Courtney like horses. She really hyped up Bekah's new horse outfit!

Easter

Sam's Easter "eggs"

Yup, they're girls. They wanted pictures of their shoes (which you can's see cuz they're the same color as their tights!).

For My Sisters...

Just thought you might want to see the bargain curtains I found at that last (or close to last) rummage sale we stopped at. I really like them! Especially since they were only $2! :)

Our *Potential* New Home (Gotta Unload This One First)

A tour of the first floor. There's also a partially finished basement and 3 more bedrooms and a 3/4 bathroom upstairs.

Sisters Weekend

Kenny and Kath's son Ethan

The third weekend in March, my sisters and I were able (thanks to husbands and parents) to get together in California for a long weekend of girl-time. I flew in and out of San Diego and so got to spend some extra time with Julie and her family (pictured above, minus my brother-in-law Matt). We stayed at Kenny and Kath's place up in Canyon Country from Friday to Sunday and Kenny took Ethan (who is just the cutest little guy!) to Derek and Sandy's place so we truly had a girls-only weekend. :)

We went to a place called Magic Castle on Friday night (really nice dinner and a variety of magic shows afterwards), rummage sale-ing and our traditional McDon's breakfast on Saturday morning, had a scheduled nap for Saturday afternoon, watched a "chick-flick" that evening and were able to worship together at Kenny and Kath's church on Sunday. It was really a great time -- it just went by too quickly!