"Updated Picture of Ole..."

10 days until he comes home...

"Beautiful Girl..."

"Fun with the Farmers..."

Our friends the Farmers came over last night. The kids ran themselves wild and the adults enjoyed catching up and talking about everything from Insatiable wine to the Flying Conchords.

We love you guys...come back soon!!!
Brad and Ava...
Joia and Caedmon...
Handsome Jack...
Caleb and Ava chillin out...
Movie star Ava...

"Easter 2008"

I hope everyone had a blessed Easter! We sure did...after the horses (see previous blog) we went to my parent's house to spend Easter weekend. It was a very relaxing weekend...Justin was able to go on a great 50 mile ride on Saturday, my dad entertained the kids by going shopping and to McDonald's, and my Mom and I were able to spend a few hours shopping and going out to lunch. Easter sunday we went to church with the family and then onto Dave and Christina's for lunch and the annual easter egg hunt.

We missed Jon and Rachel and the kids, but they were in our thoughts all day long. We also missed our family in Iowa and South Dakota....We are blessed to have such a wonderful and loving family. We love you all!!!!!

"Just Horsin' Around..."

This past Christmas, the main request on Charley's Christmas list was to be able to go horseback riding. Justin was able to plan a whole day of riding over Christmas break, but we unfortunately got snowed in...

We were finally able to make it this weekend and we all had a blast! What a great day. All three kiddos fell in love with the horses and were able to ride them for several hours. Charley seemed like a natural and was even able to trot for awhile. I love all the pictures we took because they capture the pure joy on my angels' faces. They were even given the chance to gather "real eggs" from the chicken coop...

The owners let each kid pick the horse of their choice....leave it to our Dillan to pick the BIGGEST one. Needless to say, I was a little freaked out watching her mount him, but she was fearless and loved it. Ah, thank the Lord for guardian angels!

We're going to look into horseback riding lessons for the three of them...look for more horse pics to come!


P.S. Susie, if you are reading this, thank you SO very much. We had a wonderful time with you and your daughter and future son-in-law!!!

"School Carnival 2008..."

"Conversation with Dillan..."

Dillan: Mommy, did you know that all the girls in dance class were talking about throwing (frowing) temper tantrums?

Me: Oh really?

Dillan: Yeah....they all said that it's never good to throw (frow) a fit...

Me: That's right....

Dillan: Well, I raised my hand and when the teacher called on me I stood up and talked...

Me: What did you talk about Dillan? (Starting to prepare myself....)

Dillan: I told my class that it's IMPOSSIBLE to never through (frow) a fit...sometimes you just gotta let it out or you will explode inside. It's not healthy to hold your screams inside....

Me: "Sigh"

"Local Artists..."

I've been slowly redecorating our living and dining rooms...I was fortunate enough to be able to commission three local artists from the area to create some original art pieces to hang in our dining room...they were even willing to let me watch their creative process unfold....

"Happy St. Patty's Day from Ole!"

"Happy St. Patty's Day!!!"...

I have decided to keep my blog open for the time being...I will be moderating all comments from now on. Thanks for all the supportive comments we have received over the past week!

Yesterday, we all went to the annual St. Patrick's Day Parade downtown. It turned out to be a great parade and we had beautiful weather. (A little too beautiful maybe...we all ended up with sunburned faces and necks). Anyway, a great time was had by all. We were able to spend the morning with our dear friends the DeCostes and the Hodges.

Halfway through the parade, we noticed that Caleb was starting to scratch everywhere and appeared to be having some kind of allergic reaction, breaking out in big bumps all over his skin. Justin went in search of some benadryl and that led to a chain reaction of events. Long story short, the bike medics on call came to look at Caleb. We were then asked to move inside the store behind us so they could look at him better. They were concerned that because he was obviously having a reaction to something that his breathing might be affected. To Justin and I he appeared to be fine, except for the annoying hives and itching. The medics even went as far as to bring an ambulance into the alley to transport Caleb to the hospital. Needless to say, we created quite a scene at the parade. We decided to run Caleb home, give him a dose of Benedryl, and the hives dissapeared within minutes. We still have no idea what set him off. The only thing we can figure out is that the parade had A LOT of different animals in it...horses, mules, llamas, etc. ???????????????????????? Very strange indeed....

Here are a few pictures of our day.....

"Change in Plans..."

Due to a nasty comment on our family blog, I feel that I have no choice but to go private. So, if you are a reader of our blog and would like to continue to do so, please leave me a comment with your email address.

It's a shame that we live in a world where people can be so cruel and hateful....

"Quote of the Week..."

"Visit With Olaf..."

Yes, you heard me right. We finally decided on a name...Mr. Olaf...we will call him Ole for short. Just a few more weeks until he comes home. The breeders are great people to work with. They are going to start crate training him in about a week along with paper training...hopefully Ole will get the hang of it quickly. I don't know who is more excited..the kids or myself!

"First Bike Wreck..."

Caleb and the girls spent today riding their bikes. Caleb was so proud of how well and fast he was able to go. We were proud of him too and enjoyed watching the pure joy on his face! Unfortunately he had his first nasty wreck and scraped his forehead and hand up pretty good. He cried pretty hard until I was able to bandage him up with his favorite Spongebob bandaids. Once he calmed down, the first thing he wanted to do was call his Papa to tell him all about it. Caleb thinks the sun rises and sets with his Papa!

We are sorry you got hurt today buddy. You are a tough boy!!!

"Who is this Girl???"

and why has she invaded my house???

"Updated Picture of the Baby..."

Why do I feel so guilty about taking him from his Mom??? I guess they just look so cozy...