An Ode To Sawyer Jacob

 Our sweet Sawyer Jacob is turning the big ONE tomorrow! (October 28)

It's hard to believe that we've been a family of four for a whole year now.

Of course, a first birthday means reflecting back on some of the different things I was feeling a year ago.  Excitement, apprehension, nervous, peaceful- God gifted me with a really easy birth with Sawyer.  I know things don't always go so smoothly so I was pretty thankful when it went about as good as it could have!

Those first moments when you see the little baby you've been carrying for (more than) nine months... I remember that the two first things I thought were "he's got a lot of hair and he has a huge mouth!".

I mean just look at that thing!

For the most part, he has been a pretty easy baby.  He would lay on the floor by himself and just hang out for a long time.

A lot of times after he ate I could just lay him down wherever and he would drift off peacefully into dreamland.  That was such a nice change after being used to Summer who did that a whopping two times in her life!

As per the usual, he became a lot more alert and interactive...

and got to be so much fun to play with!  He had and still has the best little giggle ever!

He and Summer have become quite the pals, spending most of their time together when they are both awake.

More recently I have given him the name "Sawyer the Destroyer.  This first picture is a great depiction of how he just quickly makes one mess and moves right on to the next.

He has become my exercise program- cleaning up his messes and chasing him around or rescuing him from somewhere has become my norm.

We just never know what kind of shenanigan he'll be pulling off next!

He's our snuggle bug, our handsome lil charmer, and he makes us laugh every day.

And he still has a big mouth!

Harvest And Birthdays And Family, Oh My!

I got to be in one of my happy places this weekend!

Last Thursday I loaded up the kids and headed off to my parents for a few days.  I love harvest and I want my kids to love it too.  Gotta teach 'em young, right?  Both of them were a little unsure about the combine at first.  It's just so big!  But it didn't take long until they decided it was an alright place to be.  We didn't get a trip to the elevator which was kinda sad but there's always next year.  I hope.

We also had a combined first birthday party for Sawyer and my niece who was born just four weeks before him.

He ate some frosting, but didn't really dig into the cake too much.  He just didn't know what to do with all that frosting so he wiped it all over the place!

He still smelled sugary the next day:)

Meanwhile, Summer was grandpa's little sidekick all weekend long.  She does not adjust well to the time change and wakes up extra early.  So grandpa gets her out of bed and takes her to do turkey chores before feeding her breakfast.  By that point Sawyer is waking up and I'm feeling a little more ready to get up myself.  Grandpa, Summer, and Mommy are all happy with that arrangement so it's a win-win-win!  One afternoon though, Summer had just had a bath and was playing in just her cute little undies.  My dad had come in for something and she saw him go back outside and slipped out the door behind him unnoticed.  He was almost all the way to the turkey house when he happened to turn around and see a tiny, barefoot, underwear clad girl following him, ready to go see the turkeys!  He promptly returned her to the house where her clothes were waiting:)

Sunday night we had a bunch of family in for supper because my aunt and several cousins were visiting from Colorado.  Twas a lovely evening!

Also happening over the weekend was a surprise birthday party for Katrina, who is one of my bestest friends ever.  It was probably my favorite event of the whole weekend!  Yet, as I pulled into the driveway that night I realized I did not capture one single moment on camera.  I guess I was too busy soaking up all the time with my friends that I rarely spend time with!  It was a beautiful night and was reminiscent of old times.  When people started leaving at 8:30 I was getting a little nervous that on my night out with no kids to worry about, I would be going home earlier than I wanted.  But there were a few of us that stuck around for awhile longer to just chat about life.  And we also got to cheer up the grumpy policeman who came to check out what was going on:)  He must have expected a drunken party but quickly realized it was not and he got a lot happier pretty fast.

By the time Monday morning rolled around, we were really missing daddy!  So we loaded up and headed back to see him, stopping for lunch at McDonald's where Summer had her first playplace experience.  She wasn't too impressed, really.  Maybe in another year or so when she's a little bigger!

And now, we resume life as normal.

Because Life Is Just Better When You're Wearing A Bike Helmet

Recently we spent a weekend camping and Summer had access to a couple of bike helmets that belong to her cousins.  You better believe that if she was awake, the bike helmet was on.

(The bike never actually moved while she was on it.  But the horn got honked over and over again!)

Helmets make food taste way better.

It makes watching people chop wood so much more exhilarating.

And footballs are much easier to handle while wearing a helmet.

Watching people chop wood, you ask?  Why yes, I did give it a try!  And it went about as good as you can possibly imagine by the looks of this picture:)

This guy didn't care about helmets or chopping wood.  He did, however, sample his first pudgy pie and he's a huge fan!

The following weekend we got to witness this gal get married.  It was a beautiful and God-honoring day and so good to catch up with some Alabama friends and other people we have connected with through them.

October is flying by and I'm still waiting for the real fall weather to arrive.  I keep thinking I'm going to switch out the kids' clothes but then I look at the upcoming weather and put it off just a little bit longer.  One of these days I'll need to, though, and pretty soon I'll be dreaming of sunshine.  But until then I will just keep burning my fall scented candles and imagine the air outside is just a little bit more crisp.

Ah, fall..... how I love you!

Whirlwind Wedding Weekend

We had a really fast and busy weekend- we piled the kiddos and a few bags in the van and off we went!

We celebrated Steeve and Sarah's wedding:)

Sawyer spent most of his time at the reception taking a nap under the stairs while Summer enjoyed the cupcakes and dancing.

And by dancing, of course, I mean taking giant steps around in a circle while flapping her arms.  She gets her moves from her mother, you know:)

She also participated in Sunday morning turkey chores with grandpa.  He's got her carrying dead ones already!  That saying of how you can take the girl out of the country but you can't take the country out of the girl... I decided the country part of the girl gets passed on to her daughter, too:)

Then we left church right after lunch to get back in time for our Sunday evening Perspectives class.  We dropped off our two very sleep deprived children with child care, said "Good luck!" and sat for the next few hours listening to the speaker who thankfully was very dynamic.  Otherwise we might have settled in for a little involuntary nap:)

And now we just catch our breath before the next adventure starts.

Summer Photo Dump

When the night gets chilly but you have no extra clothes with you, grandma's extra girly clothes do the trick!

Campfires and swimming

Watermelon party

A walk to DQ surely justifies the consumption of ice cream!

My handsome hubby being the best man in a wedding

Corn on the cob!

These two really started playing together this summer:)

A meet in the middle picnic with my parents.  And some friends that live in the middle who joined in the fun.

Potty training chart!

Whhheeeeeee!!!!!!!!!

A trip to the zoo on a beautiful September morning.

One of Sawyer's favorite toys currently...

Applesauce time

When Summer wakes up before we are ready for her to wake up, she gets sent to the couch to read books

And just like that, Summer is over and FALL IS HERE!!

Kick Off To The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year

When is the most wonderful time of the year, you ask?  Well, it begins on September 1 and doesn't end until December 31.  Starting off with a holiday weekend which also is my birthday weekend and ending with New Year's Eve.  All the in between with fall being amazing, Thanksgiving, and Christmas make it hard to say which part is the best.  So I say it's just all the best time of the year!

So this year we had thought we would take a little getaway with our little family but as it turns out, every one jacks up their prices over a holiday weekend.  Since we had already taken a trip to Alabama over Memorial Day weekend, we decided to just head out to Illinois to be with my family, and to have my mom babysit while Danny and I just did a day trip.  Turned out to be a great decision!

I chose to open my presents from Danny on Friday before we left rather than haul them with us.  He did good!  I got my favorite chapstick that I have been out of and unable to find for a long time, tickets to a Christmas concert, and a fall wreath for our front door!  All things I love.  However, after he ordered our concert tickets, we had a family Christmas get scheduled for that same night.  So they are for sale!  Natalie Grant and Danny Gokey on Friday December 15 in Ft. Wayne.  Let one of us know if you want them!

Anyway.  So Saturday morning we got up and headed just about 45 minutes north of my parents to Starved Rock State Park for the day.  There is a horse back riding place just a little way from the park and we have been talking about doing that since we got married.  We finally did it!  It was your typical follow the trail in a single file line place but that's alright with me.  I'd rather do that than try to ride around unguided just waiting for my horse to start galloping somewhere!

Then we headed to the park for a picnic lunch and some hiking.  I've been there plenty of times and have never seen it so full!  Holiday weekend plus people trying to fill up the last days of summer meant for really full trails.  But it was still fun and really pretty!

There are lookouts over the Illinois river to climb up to,

and canyons with waterfalls (which were all dried up) to hike down into.

Which means that all the in between parts are filled with stairs.  OOOOHHHHH the stairs!  Back in the day before I ever had kids and was in shape, the stairs weren't too big of a deal.  They're kind of a big deal now.

While on a trail that followed the river, Danny found this place in a rock formation that he thought I should climb into.  So I did, with much effort.  While he was taking this picture, a family walked past and their little boy said "the mom is stuck!"  Yes, little boy, the mom is stuck:)  At least, she felt stuck at the time!

Meanwhile our kiddos had a great day with grandpa and grandma.  They got to be outside a lot which is a dream come true,

and Summer got to try out the new massage chair which she thought was pretty funny!

Once we got back, we finished off our day with supper with some of my cousins and their kids.  It was fun but there was much chaos and a few very grumpy children which kept our relaxing socialization to a minimum.

Sunday was my actual birthday and we had plans to go to one of the local homeless missions where my brother took his turn having their evening service.  Due to a busy weekend and plans to go out for ice cream after the service, I had no birthday cake.  (A huge shame because cake is my very favorite dessert and I can eat several pieces some guilt free on my birthday.)  But since my mom thought I should at least blow out a candle, I got a birthday tomato while the family sang:)  Oh, and if you'll notice, I even was wearing the birthday shirt!

I did finally get dessert on my birthday, and it happened to be one of my very favorite ice cream places that I only get once in a while when we are out there.

Monday we were able to have a laid back morning around the house then went out to lunch with my family before hitting the road.  So?  We didn't get our little family getaway like we originally planned.  But I'm sure glad things turned out like they did!

Things I wish I had a picture of:

Saturday night after the kids were in bed, we went to my brother and sis-in-laws house where all her sisters were for the evening.  When Nate and Jamie got married, they kinda became like extra sis-in-laws to me.  I love being able to spend time with them!

Saturday evening at my cousin's- she, her sister, and myself took a little walk together to deliver some dessert to our parents where they were having their own little get together.  My uncle came driving by, thinking he was supposed to be picking up the dessert himself.  So we stuck our thumbs out and he gave us a ride in the back of his pick up the rest of the way.  We were hootin' and hollerin' and acting like a bunch of giddy high school girls.  It was only about a two minute ride but it was fun while it lasted!