Mini Vacation!

 We had been wanting to visit our dear friends Sami and Bekah for a long time and the opportunity finally presented itself!  They only live 2 hours away so we have no excuse not to pack up our things and go down there every couple months!  :)

 

 The kids were having a jam session...we raised them right! :)  (oh and apparently all the pics have my photography logo on them..don't know how that happened, but now you can see what one of my logos look like!)  :)

 My little drummer boy

 Ezekiel of course found the ball pit! haha

 The kids finally quiet and watching a movie!

 Ezekiel and Jojo playing

 Bekah and I went to some garage sales on Saturday morning and we found a little inflatable pool for the kids to play in.  My kids did not waste a minute!  They were running as fast as they could and would jump in.  They are my little fishes!

 Sweet little Elizabeth and Josiah had fun but were a little more cautious.  :)

 Snack time!

 Sami had some Christian rap music that his friend made and my kids LOVE them some dance music!  So we had a little dance party is the kitchen.

 haha  

 Rest time! :)

 Before we left, Bekah and I snapped some pics being goofy... :)

 

I miss you guys already!!!!!!!!!

Last game of the season

The kids just finished their last soccer game for the season. Was it fun?  I mean...I guess you could call it that.  Annabella enjoyed it...kinda.  After about 5-7 minutes of playing she would ask to come out and feel her blankie claiming: "It's too hot and i'm stressed out!"haha.  Malachi on the other hand did pretty good at most of the practices but basically refused to play in any of the games.  He spent most of his time eating the team snacks and running around the other fields nearby with Charlie.  We can't quite yet decipher if he's just way too young or if he just could care less about soccer...I decided I might try again next spring so the boys can do it together.  As for Annabella, I think she might be sticking to what she loves for awhile- ballet.  She is also begging us to get her violin lessons, so that might be on the horizon as well.  But as far as soccer goes, we will just have to wait and see.  No future Beckham's yet, but maybe still to soon to tell!  :)

 Here's some silly, fun, and hilarious pics of their last soccer game of the season:

Annabella and her best buddy Leah rock the soccer field, but refuse to do so without being hand in hand! haha

Me and my precious Malachi snuggling while the other kids play soccer.  :)

Go Bella go!!  :)

Malachi is getting stressed because the coach asked him if he wanted to play...too much pressure. haha  :)

But when it's all said and done, let's face it...we know what this is all really the coolest thing about playing soccer---the trophies! or at least, my kids think so!  :)

And to top it all off, they had a giant bounce house and yummy snacks in celebration of their last game!

So I think all in all, I am glad we did it!  I'm not sure they actually learned much; but they got to run around, hang out with their buddy's and eat yummy snacks- I'd say that's a success!  :)

Annabella speaks out!

Annabella- "I want a baby sister!"
Me- "Well, sweetie, maybe someday we can have another baby, but I don't know for sure if it's going to be a baby sister..only God knows."
Annabella- "well, I want a baby sister!"
Me- "Well, what if it's a baby brother?"
Annabella- "Hmmm...We could put him up for adoption!"
hahahaha

Just thought I would share!

Summer time-What we've been up to

Summertime puts a smile on my face.  Anything where you have an excuse to make the kids stay out back  and then hose them down when it's all said and done...well, lets just say it makes for happy kids and one happy mama!

 For example....hahaha...  now in Ezekiel's case, he should probably be hosed down even if he's just stepped outside for 2 minutes (being that, in that time he would most certainly have found any mud in the nearby vicinity and rolled in it!)  :)

We were having a party and after we (the mommies) stepped in and decided they had destroyed enough we forced them to all sit on the couch. haha They ended up watching Angelina Ballerina (the girls wearing their princess dresses and the poor boys are WAYY outnumbered)

 Annabella wants to be all grown up.  She grabs one of my books ("When God Weeps"-a book about suffering and the Sovereignty of God), climbs in the adult seat in our car (aka. no car seat), crosses her legs, and begins to look like shes in deep thought about the life.   Stay little Annabella- trust us big people...it's way funner!  :)

 The kids ask me to play legos and I'm lucky to make a car or somthing...Charlie plays legos with them and they come up with this! haha :)

 The awesome perks of having Charlie work from home- snuggle breaks!!

 Ezekiel goes into his room for a little bit and comes out like this..I mean the hat and the shoes I can maybe get but when did he decides, "I think no pants would reaalllyy complete this look?" haha

 The kids made the back deck into their "home".  Geezee as if our house isn't good enough?!  haha  :)

 Wow Ezekiel...you are sending me mixed messages.  Are you a fairy princess or a Knight in Shining Armor??  :)

 

 Malachi was very sick the first week of summer..poor baby! As the other two just ran circles around him, this is where he stayed.  :(

Now that's more like it!!  My little warriors!  :)

I love summertime!

Garden update!

l Okay so last time I posted about this I was about to go on vacation and I was letting my kids put in some (almost dead) lettuce in- basically just because they kept bugging me about putting something in the ground before we left.  WELL....those half dead lettuce leaves turned into into this....

 Before we left on vacation....

 

 Very pitiful...we thought for sure they would be shriveled up nothings when we got back..especially because we were already planting them way too late in the season...

 And this is them now!!!!  And this is after I already have cut off a bunch of pieces for a salad!!  

**Oh and I have to take a time out and tell a little side story that is too awesome to be forgotton**
While these pictures were being taken here's a little picture of what was going on around me:
--I went out to go gather some lettuce and take some pictures when all the sudden..**Yikkkess**..a bee stings the bottom of my foot!  I know...I know..shoes would have been a good idea!  Anyway, I am in pain and my foot is swelling but I'm determined to get these pictures.  My friend Wendi is over at my mom's house and sees me hobbling around so she comes down to help.  While she is helping me out all the sudden Ezekiel comes running down the lawn naked (Annabella must have opened the door for him..how he was naked...well, that's just another mystery into Ezekiel..haha)   So I'm trying to get him to go back inside when all the sudden he starts taking a poo on the lawn!  I scream, "Hurry Wendi, quick hose him down!"  She ran and got the hose and she proceeded to hose him down and he just ran around and squealed.  haha
Story of our lives!  :)

Okay back to the garden.....  :)

 I think it's just as much fun for me as it is for the kids to watch them grow!

I know the Lord has so much to tell us through gardens and growing things-even when you think something is almost dead and not worth much- it's AMAZING to watch what HE can bring back to life!  :)

So long preschool!

Wow, Annabella is officially not a preschooler! I can't even believe it!  We have been so insainly blessed to have a wonderful friend who has a Montessori School out of her home.  Annabella has had the awesome privilege of being her student and learning so many great things!!!

On their last day we all had a potluck and Annabella wanted to show me all the fun things they do!

Good job bella bear!

The fun cake that Mrs Amy(one of her teachers) made!

Annabella's class and her wonderufl teachers!  (Mrs.kelly on the left and Mrs.Amy on right) :)

The kids after we got home!  I guess the boys learned quickly-school is tiring! haha :)