A Tradition!

This is something we do every year when we take down the Christmas tree!  It took A LOT of convincing to get Austin to do it.  I am thinking I am going to lose him one of these years!  He continues to be my goofy kid though and appease him momma!

The girls just had to get in on the fun too!  So here goes the first year for Keziah...

and Adah!  They are both just too cute!  I guess you can call this one of our family traditions (as strange as it is)!

Our Family Christmas!

We had such a wonderful Christmas!  I can't imagine anything better then having Eden home and not being away from our family for Christmas!  We woke up early Christmas Eve.  Eden needed to have her jaundice checked which meant a trip to the hospital for some blood work.  Brian took her to do that while I stayed and made homemade donuts with my new donut pan from Mat and Steph.  When Brian got back with Eden we opened presents.   The kids all got many things they are going to enjoy for days to come.  One thing we got for the family was a used Wii.  I am super excited to have this around to spend time doing with the kids.  We have some fun games to go with it and I got Austin and Brian the wii game Wipe Out (a game show they like to watch).  This year I had the pleasure of seeing Austin give his sisters gifts that he bought with his own money and picked out at the store for them.  They were so happy and will probably never forget where those gifts came from.  Keziah got a hippo webkin and Adah got a doll that talks.  I know I have said it many times before, but Austin has such a caring heart!  I love that kid!  And the girls adore him too!

I feel like this year has been so much more stressful with our pregnancy and then Eden's birth, that I have somewhat forgotten what Christmas is about.  I feel like I have just been trying to 'get things done' and have sort of gotten lost in the busyness of life.  When Eden was born and I was alone in the NICU I had time to reflect on what a gift she is and what a gift God's son was and still is. The Bible is real. Jesus is real.  It's that simple.  We all know the story...He was brought here as a little baby born to the virgin Mary.  He grew up as a man like all of us and then hung on a cross to die for US so our sins could be forgiven so that we can live.  I can never imagine giving my child to die for anybody like Jesus did for us.  What an amazing story!  God is so good and has such an amazing plan for all of us just like he did his own son.  I am grateful Eden got to be a part of it this year and many years to come!  God bless everyone!  Merry Christmas!

Moments in time...

This morning I want to remember a couple things...Kezzie and Austin woke up with excitement to find there was snow on the ground.  Kezzie was pounding the bathroom door to get daddy's attention so she could tell  him about it.  Austin was at first frustrated to see that every school around here had a two hour delay except his.  Come to find out his did too but it just wasn't being posted online or on tv (we got a text on our phone instead).  So once he realized he had an extra two hours to kill he quickly fed himself and Kezzie (he was motivated) some cereal and they were headed outside.  I was left to eat breakfast with my little Adah and I began to reflect on how blessed I was to have time with Adah (even though she was protesting the fact that she didn't get to go out!) and on how fast time has gone by for the other two.  I found myself really enjoying the time alone with Adah, and realizing how quickly Kezzie and Austin have grown and become buddies.  What an exciting day to wake up to a ground full of wet snow (perfect for snow balls) and then to have the two of them go out and play together and to get to enjoy breakfast with only my youngest before the baby comes...I feel so blessed.  God has blessed me so much!  So, even though it's only 33 degrees outside, I am definitely thankful for this day!
A funny story...
I took Austin to school this morning since it was so slushy and wet out and I didn't want him walking in his shoes.  I had to run to the post office so I decided to do that at the same time.  I didn't bother dressing the girls since they didn't need to get out of the car.  I dropped Austin off and headed to the post office.  I was running in really quick and the girls are in full view the whole time so they just stayed in the car.  As I paid to have my package sent off I noticed Kezzie get out of her car seat.  No big deal, she does this and it's usually to help Adah get a book or something.  BUT, when I got back out to the car and came around the corner, I got quite the sight!  Kezzie was standing with her jammie pants pulled down, she was butt naked with the side door wide open declaring she had to pee (we travel with a little potty in our car so apparently she was going to pee in it but I have no idea why the door had to be open to do it).  Adah was looking at a book, so I was right about that part, but I was completely shocked to see Kezzie just standing there naked with the door open.  I quickly closed the door and told her never to open it when I am not there and explained to her how dangerous this was (I guess I know now that the doors open from the inside if the car is off, even when all the doors are locked) and then we also had to have a talk about how much older she is getting and how she needs to have a little modesty when we are out in public.  I really wonder how many people got to see that!

Fall is Here!!

October 6, 2011  A great opportunity to get some fun fall shots.  The weather was beautiful so it was a nice day to spend outside.  Who can resist these sweeties?!  Can you find them in all those leaves?

October 16, 2011  Another great day!  It was a bit more chilly but we had to get outside while we can because it's going to get a lot colder then this!  The girls were thrilled to have their big brother outside with them!  He always comes up with fun ideas!  Like this first picture...he built a nest for them all to sit in like little birds!  He also put a huge pile at the end of our slide, which the girls thought was really fun!  Austin went and got his sled out too and used it to scoop up leaves and throw them into the air.  It looked pretty cool when they were coming down around us!  What great pictures of three of my favorite people!  We are incredibly blessed!!

And fall isn't complete without a very delicious squash pie!

Austin's Plants!

We got this awesome Carnivorous Planetarium for Austin for Christmas this last year and we have enjoyed watching everything grow.  We waited until spring to get them started just so they would have more sunlight and warmer temps.  Some of them we were able to plant right away, but there were several that we had to put in a baggie with some water and refrigerate for 6 weeks before planting.  They are all there now and doing really well.  They grow SUPER slow!  I have no idea what we will do with them when they are big enough to actually eat insects, etc. but for now we are just enjoying watching them grow and form into plants that we can recognize (ie: the Venus Fly Trap)!

A"maze"d by Grace Corn Maze!

We had a really good time today with some great friends.  I recently heard about a corn maze in Charles City that is in the shape of Noah's Ark.  Click here for their website if you are interested.  They had a petting zoo too!  It was pretty pricey for our family to get it ($8 each for Austin, Brian and myself) but would have been more worth that money if we had more time to stay.  There were three different mazes you could choose from and they gave you a map to help you find your way.  One maze took 1/2 hour, another 1.5 hours, and the other took 2 hours.  One of the longer ones actually had a 'farm scene investigation' that looked really cool.  We only did the half hour one since we had other plans later that evening.  The petting zoo wasn't to die for, but the girls liked it well enough!  There were a couple llamas, a horse, a mean turkey, a couple bunnies, and some mature baby chicks-none of which you could really even pet.  On our maze we let the kids lead mostly!  We were there with our friends the Epperlys and McQuillens.  Kezzie has friends from both families so she was in heaven!  Along the path of the maze the three kids (Beau, Abby and Kez) pretended they were on a lion hunt searching for a lion.  They actually thought they were going to find a lion because the maze we were in was in the shape of a lion!  They kept stopping along the path and pointing out lion prints.  It was really sweet!  Abby carried around a map as if she knew where to go!  The kids all had a blast with the exception of Austin as his allergies were going very crazy.  I think we spent the time we wanted to there and headed home after a long 2 hours!!! It was a good thing we were in the company of friends or else I think we all would have been miserable!

Austin is a TEENAGER!!!

Here he is on his actual birthday.  It was a thursday so there wasn't much we could do to celebrate until the weekend.  We did however have Brian's parents over for some Poor Richards Pizza and a nice Hawkeye cake that just happened to be already designed and sitting at the Charles City Hy-Vee bakery!  Funny story: I was carefully loading all my groceries into the van and keeping the cake safely off to the side when a bag I was loading bumped it and sent it rolling across the parking lot.  To make it even worse someone was watching the whole thing and promptly let me know that I dropped something.  Luckily it was a round cake with a football on top to keep it from hitting the top and a tray on the bottom to keep it fairly centered and from hitting the sides too badly!  I laugh now but at the time was not in any hurry to pick it up off the pavement and see the damage which is why that person who saw it all happen felt the need to tell me I had dropped something.  I was pleasantly surprised that it was still edible!

It is so hard to believe that I have been a mom to this boy for 13 years.  So many of those years are such a blur as I worked to get through college and meet the man of my dreams along with trying to play out some of the last of my teenage days (thanks mom and dad for helping us get through those years)!  I am so incredibly thankful for Austin in my life and wouldn't have it any other way.  He brings so much joy to my every day.  I love to hear his stories (most of them fish stories) and love watching his innovative-ness.  He is so creative and sweet and has such a loving heart.  Even when he isn't at his kindest to me he always feels regret and apologizes without being asked.  I am also impressed by how great of a big brother he is. I knew he would be, but as a boy who has always wanted a brother he does a great job of making the best of it!  I am always amazed at the games he makes up to play with Kezzie.  He loves his sisters and I don't think he would trade them for anything!   

Actually, for Austin's birthday, he celebrated by having a friend come to the river with us.  This is a huge responsibility for me so it was definitely a treat for him to get to do that.  I haven't ever allowed it before!  Here is the post about that weekend.  I felt bad when the weekend was all over and I realized that we didn't really do anything the whole weekend to acknowledge it was his birthday.  Although, I did say a couple times, "well, since this is your birthday celebration we can do that" (get McD's, get ice cream, we let him get fireworks, etc.)  I think he had a great weekend and I learned that really it wasn't any trouble at all to have a friend along (I just worry about the safety of a kid other than my own)!  They were responsible and safe at all times and listened quite well.  I was thankful for the friend he brought along.  He is a good kid!

Here we are on the Sunday after his birthday.  We celebrated at my mom and dad's with all the family there.  Aunt Emi made Austin's favorite dessert (m&ms and marshmallows drizzled with chocolate over a peanut butter crust).  Everyone took some time to watch him ride his mini bike (Keith even took a ride), and we all enjoyed the last of the air show taking place in Waterloo (what we could see was awesome).  It was a great day!  Austin mostly received money/gift cards for his birthday but he also got an awesome RC boat to drive around at Garnett Pond or the river and a car that he can take apart and put together with different wheels etc. along with a couple new lures to go fishing with!

And of course the traditional Happy Birthday song!!

Adah, Austin and a little Kez!

I got these pictures taken in July.   I wanted to do something for when Adah turned 18 months (in May) because we don't get many chances to do outdoor summer pictures since the girls' birthdays are in November.  Austin turns into a teenager this month so I really wanted to get pictures of him too.  July seemed like a good compromise time-wise and the weather was beautiful!  I couldn't resist her snapping a few shots of Kezzie too while we were at it!  They are all so good!  How will I ever choose?!!

Jumping Place!

I have been hearing about this place for a while now and actually have attempted to find time while in CF to go before but it never worked out.  So today we got to go!  As we were driving by the building Kezzie said, "do we have time today? are we going to do our special thing?"  The last time we were in CF I drove by the building and looked at the hours and she asked me what I was doing and I told her it was a special place but I wasn't sure we were going to have time to go there.  After running our other errands, we didn't have time that day and apparently she remembered exactly what that building looked like!  I was kind of surprised!  It was so much fun!  I was even more surprised to find out that Austin (almost 13) enjoyed it the most out of the three of them.  You pay to jump for 2 hours but we only had 1.5 before they had to close.  I thought that would be plenty of time but he wasn't ready to go home!  Keziah and Austin had a really good time together and Adah and I did our own thing.  They have an area for 3 and under and that is pretty much where we stayed.  They also had a bunch of beach balls laying around and Adah had a lot of fun with them.  It wasn't until the end that she actually got into one of the jumping castles and started enjoying it!  I guess we will just have to go back again sometime!  Austin is already asking when we can go back!

My big 7th grader!

Austin started and made it through his first day of school today.  Here he is all ready to walk out the door!  I think he is ready for a little structure and ready to see his friends more!  I don't know if he's thought about all the homework Jr. high brings though!  He also made it through his first football practice.  He will practice every day after school for 2 hours.  He runs to the high school with his team, practices and then runs back to the school.  He was pretty tired tonight not to mention HUNGRY!!!  He is really going to eat me out of house and home now!  I am super excited to see him play in his first game!  I just pray his Osgood-Schlatter's won't be a problem for him as he continues to have some ankle and knee pain.  And I really pray he can keep up with school work and adjust to a much busier schedule.  Here's to another year!  Bring it on!!!

One last Hoorah!

School is scheduled to start tomorrow :(  We thought we better celebrate good and hard one last time! After a good time in the pool we went inside for quick baths and jammies and then headed out for a fire. The girls had a long nap so I let them stay up and enjoy a 'shmarshmallow' (as Kezzie says).  I think Kezzie had a s'moore and Austin enjoyed one too! Adah just had a plain marshmallow!  I love these kids to pieces!  They are so much fun to watch play and hang out with.  The top left picture Austin is helping Adah jump in the pool, the next one Austin is making it into a wave pool, next he is helping her jump again.  The second one in from the left on the bottom is of Adah trying to make a basket into the pool.  Each kid took their turn at this and she had to try too.  She was getting so frustrated because she couldn't get her arms just right to throw it far enough.  The rest are pretty self explanatory!   So long summer break!  It was nice knowing ya!

Summer Lovin'

We are just having a blast loving this life God has given us!  Beautiful summer days, fun time together, pop sickles in the sun, and who doesn't love swinging on their belly?!!  If you are wondering why Austin is on the roof...it's because he and Keziah were taking turns casting her fishing pole and Austin somehow got the line stuck in the shingles on the roof.  We got the ladder out and he climbed up there.  I was up on the playground and it seemed like the perfect photo op!  He was having fun hanging out up there!  I can't believe how big he is getting...almost 13 years old!
I hope you are all enjoying your summer as much as we are!

Beach, Pool and Sprinkler Fun!

 

Earlier today we went to the beach at Airport Lake.  I didn't take very many pictures but I got a couple good ones of Adah.  We  had a picnic in the grass after we were all done swimming too!  The kids have so much fun when we go there and we are almost always the only ones there other then the friends we meet there.  I hope this continues as this is one of our favorite spots to hang out!  After we went home for naps the girls woke up and we went outside to have fun in our own yard.  It was just way too beautiful of a day to stay inside at all!  I took plenty of pictures this afternoon to make up for not very many this morning!  They all enjoyed the Clifford sprinkler (that thing is old...from when Austin was a little kid), and especially enjoyed the little slide leading into the pool!  I think this is going to be where we hang out most of the summer!

 

What's Austin been up to?

School got out on May 24th!  Whooooo!  Austin has been keeping very busy with fishing!  He has brought home many turtles in hopes of keeping them all but so far I have stuck to my guns and only allowed one!  He had four at one time but only for a couple days until he could find homes for them!  They are so cute!  Austin has also been keeping busy picking rock for a local farmer!  He does it with four of his friends so it isn't so bad!  Plus he is getting paid well!  The newest thing is lifting weights at the middle school with his football coach and some other players.  Since he is going into SEVENTH grade (I can't even believe it) he will be working a lot harder and practicing a lot more so it will be good to get his strength up!  Not much else new.  Austin doesn't really like me posting too much about him so I will keep it short!!  He is such an awesome, helpful, funny, sweet (and sometimes a naughty almost 13 year old)!  I LOVE having him around to play with the girls and keep me company while they are napping.  I am enjoying having him around and can't wait to see what the rest of the summer has in store for us!

Happy Easter!

We went to church this morning (wonderful service) and then over to mom and dad's where they made a ham and duck.  My grandma Smith came along with a couple of my mom's brothers (uncle Craig and his son Dustin and uncle Wayne and aunt Jane).  Jane made some superb pies that are definitely worth mentioning (and a couple other things too)!  I made some deviled eggs (our previously dyed Easter eggs came in handy), Emily brought Snicker Apple Salad and mom and dad provided everything else.  The meal was delicious!  Before we sat down to eat we decided to do our egg hunt.  We hid them all downstairs.  Some were really high up for Austin and some were just sitting in plain site for Adah.  Unfortunately, Jamie, Keith and Rylan were in New Hampton so they weren't there.  Mom had five special Easter eggs for each of the kids each containing gold coins.
Aren't my kids the most beautiful kids you have ever seen?  I do admit Austin really could use a hair cut.  I never think of those things until it is too late!  Regardless, they are still amazing kiddos!  I thank God so much everyday for the opportunity to have Life and raise these little blessings!

 Here is a video that my church played on Easter Sunday...I wish you all could have been there!

Easter Baskets!

We knew Easter morning was going to be pretty hectic since Sunday mornings always are so we decided to have the Easter Bunny come while the girls napped today.  So when they woke up their baskets were ready for them!  Kezzie was pretty excited and of course Adah got into it too!  Kezzie got: goggles, new cups, a water bottle, Don't Spill the Beans, Bambi, a pack of 4 puzzles, bubbles, a squishy ball and a little candy.  Adah got a big book, a furReal pet duck, molding clay (that doesn't dry out), squishy ball, some graham crackers and a little bit of candy (that she will probably never eat!).  Austin got (he was with his dad this weekend so he won't get his 'til tomorrow): a thing you stick in the ground and it holds your fishing pole, a kindle gift certificate, an Iowa Hawkeyes shirt, a squirt gun and a bunch of candy!  While we don't want to forget what Easter is really about we do enjoy giving our kids these little baskets of fun!

Dying Easter Eggs!

Today mom decided it would be a great day to dye some Easter eggs.  It didn't work out for Emily and Adam's family to be there but we did get to see Molly and Gavin and Nate.  Gavin and Kezzie always get along well and enjoyed doing the eggs together.  Austin even got into it!  Rylan and Adah just caused problems!  I didn't even let Adah near a cup of dye.  Jamie at least let Rylan do a little!  When it was all done we ended up taking home 17 eggs between Austin and Kez.  I guess we will be having some deviled eggs and egg salad sandwiches in the near future!  Thanks Mom for heading this up and keeping the mess at your house!!  We love you!

Snowy Fun!

Look at these sweet kids!  It's so fun to watch Austin and Kezzie outside together.  She LOVES her big brother and LOVES to be outside!  Adah...not so much!  She had enough within the first 5 minutes!  She was happier to watch from the living room window where it was warm!  The snow was perfect for a snowman but almost too wet as the coal didn't stick very well!  I thought it was pretty cute though!

Austin's knee...

I don't think I have ever officially mentioned Austin's leg, so here I go...Around Christmas time Austin started mildly complaining that his leg hurt just below the knee.  It would hurt and then get better so we just assumed that it was tendinitis and suggested he try taking IBU regularly and if that didn't work that we would take him to the doctor to get it looked at.  He didn't think it hurt enough to take IBU so he never did making me believe it must not be that bad.  He occasionally mentioned it but for the most part acted like it was fine.  Sometime in  the middle of January Austin was having some pretty severe pain after his knee buckled getting out of his dad's jeep.  After taking him to the doctor and getting x-rays it was determined that he had a broken tibia.  And after seeing an orthopedic surgeon a few days later it was determined that he had Osgood-Schlatter's disease.  This is a very common condition found in mostly boys between the age of 9-16.  His tibia broke as a result of this and thus began the healing process (and the end of his basketball season).  He was sent home with a leg brace and told to be seen back in 2 weeks, at that apt. he was told to wear it another 4 weeks and then just recently on March 2nd, another 6 weeks.  We go back on April 13th and probably by then he will be able to go without it.  Until then he is really going to have to be careful and keep his brace on.  Easier said then done for an active 12 year old!  Heaven help us!

Out My Kitchen Window!

I love to stand at the kitchen sink and be able to watch Austin as a big brother in action!  He has bad moments too but he really amazes me at how well he can entertain and enjoy a three year old.  They have a blast together!  What a blessing Austin is!  I wonder what the two of them talk about when they are sitting out there on that snow pile!!