{iPhone Rewind} :: September

Soaking up the gorgeous weather!

Sweet girl...school can be tough some days, but to know she doesn't hate it all the time...it makes the hard work worth it.

An afternoon drive for some ice cream

Maddie Girl has been a busy, artistic girl!

Flowers from Mike :)

We used some Coca-Cola for a science experiment and then I let the kids try some. They all said it was too spicy haha

Donuts with Daddy

The kids got to see some deer out on a walk

A Trader Joe's trip means a cute bundle of flowers from my love :)

Our fox friend has been hanging around, chilling in the yard

2025 Women's Retreat. So thankful for these women.

{iPhone Rewind} :: August

We worked on a puzzle together over the course of a few days, and Eli was really focused on it!

We wrapped up our Summer of Fun! We didn't quite get to all the things on our list, but we still did a lot and had a great summer!

"Look, Mommy! I made a rocking chair for Norm!" Haha- I love this cute boy :)

We started reading The Wingfeather Saga and apparently there's a lot of suspense for Aiden haha

"Look, Mom! I can do a turban like Maddie!"

"You survived the first week back to school" flowers from Mike :)

We have been learning the books of the Bible {in order}, and the kids have done so great!

Aunt Vi sent some more beads to make bracelets, and the kids wasted no time making more!

Maddie wrote her first book! There are chapters and pictures, and she did such an amazing job. It was not a school assignment {she actually strongly dislikes writing haha}. She just decided one day she was going to write on her own and she sat down with her own creative mind and did it all herself. I'm so proud of her!

He has always made this face LOL

We found a fox hanging out in our backyard! He/she was there for quite awhile, and it was so fun to watch it.

Aiden lost another tooth! We were so glad when this one came out, because the adult tooth had already started coming in behind it!

Grandma crocheted Aiden a blanket for his birthday, and he has carried that thing with him everywhere. Anyone surprised by the colors he chose?

Just a few days after Aiden lost his top tooth, he lost another tooth, completely unexpectedly! He as eating a hard cookie and it just popped out. He was not a fan, but it saved us a little bit of the anxiety leading up to the loss, so I'm grateful it came out the way it did.

I love when Maddie and I get to go for haircuts :)

Maddie's drawings make me happy :)

I made an apple pie with the apples we picked at Stribling Orchard. It didn't turn out half bad!

We had a cookout with our community group, and Eli really loved playing this game with Mike

The kids loved painting rocks at Mrs. Celeste and Mr. Matt's house! (And it was a HUGE win that Aiden did so well with Ellie - their dog - so close to him)

Fall Family Time

Last year when Mike was installed as Lead Pastor, both sets of grandparents came into town. It just so happened to coincide with Eli and Maddie's birthday, so it was fun to have everyone here to celebrate. 

Aiden took notice and asked Grandma and Papa if they were going to come for his birthday. And of course, my parents couldn't say no ;)  So they made it happen and planned a trip to be here for his birthday this year. So we got to enjoy a fun birthday/fall trip with Grandma and Papa!

We always find fun things to do when they are here, and this trip was no exception. First up, the LEGO Discovery Center! They were running an end-of-summer sale on tickets, so we decided to check it out. It really was a fun experience; the kids loved it! It kind of reminded me of our trips to the Crayola Experience, when we lived in Texas, but of course, everything here was all LEGO-themed.

There were plenty of stations to just sit and build LEGOs until you're heart was content. But there was also a LEGO ride, a maker workshop, a 4D Ninjago movie, and a play place. And of course, there were so many cool things built out of LEGOs!

Grandma and Papa were very generous to allow the kids to pick out something from the LEGO store, and we spent the rest of the day building our fun new sets!

For Aiden's birthday, he got to go on a shopping trip with Grandma and Papa to pick out his gift. So we headed to Target for him to roam the toy aisles and choose his present. And what did he choose? A dinosaur egg. The T-Rex hatched out of the egg, and he can interact with and "train" it, as he takes care of it. It kind of reminds me of those Tamagotchis we carried around, except this is an actual dinosaur toy LOL. So now I have a roaring T-Rex in my house, with a happy little 7-year-old using his training clicker to take care of his dinosaur. I have to say...I give the hatching process/effects an A+. It was well done haha.

We had our Fall Women's Dessert Fellowship, and I was able to take my mom with me. She has friends in our women's ministry, since she came on retreat with me a couple of years ago, and it's always fun to share the every day life stuff with my parents when they're here. While we were at the Dessert Fellowship, Mike and Papa took the kids on a walk in the neighborhood and they got to see turtles in the pond.

We had beautiful weather while Grandma and Papa were here, so we took advantage of it! We decided to go on a hike to Bear's Den Park Trail. Mike and the kids have done the hike before, but this was my first time {same as my parents}. I loved that most of it was shaded, especially since most of it is uphill. But overall, it wasn't terribly difficult, and everyone did great. We enjoyed the view, and we were so thankful for the cooler weather!

Of course, we celebrated Aiden's birthday, with lots of superheroes and saving the earth! It was the main reason Grandma and Papa came, and Aiden loved every minute of his birthday celebration with Grandma and Papa here.

We also made a trip out to Stribling Orchard. The kids have been wanting to go apple picking again, so we decided to take Grandma and Papa. We were able to go during the week, so we basically had the orchard to ourselves! The weather was nice, and we came home with a whole bunch of yummy apples {and apple butter} :)

Of course, whenever Grandma and Papa are here, we also enjoy lots of good food, plenty of games, and tons of laughter. The week is always packed with activities, and we are always sad that it goes by too quickly. But we are so thankful that they are willing to make so many trips to come see us! 

Watching the Little League World Series

Looking forward to the next visit! :)