Back yard pool fun this summer

We have a baby pool we set up fairly often this summer. The kids were dying to swim every day--especially Elizabeth. She wears her swim suit almost every day in hopes I will set up the pool for her!

Craig's sister Wendy and her family even enjoyed the pool with us for one afternoon!

Caroline Mae

It's hard to believe but our little Snow White is three weeks old. She was born July 18th at 7:22 pm. She was 7lbs 5.4 oz and and a whopping 21 inches. This mama deserves a pat on the back for that one! My last doctor told me I would probably never have a baby much for than six pounds because my body just couldn't handle it...well, I guess she was wrong! She was over a pound more than Ethan and Elizabeth.

The pregnancy and delivery went well and we were so happy to finally hold our sweet Caroline. (We have been singing Neil Diamonds 'Sweet Caroline' for three weeks now--but no, she is not named after Caroline Kennedy:) We love her and are excited to get to know her better.

Walking out the door to be induced...7 days late. It totally looks like I stuffed a basket ball under my shirt!

She just found out she is now the middle child.

I love how excited Ethan looks. He has been such a great big brother.

One week birthday party. Ethan insisted we had cake to celebrate her birthday.

She looks so tired. But so pretty!

She was actually born with enough hair for hair clips! She looks like a little angel here:)

Five little fingers

It's official! This July a new miracle will be joining our little family!

Just Sunday morning cute

 Elizabeth is constantly bringing me her toy camera and asking me to take pictures of her. She just smiles forever and loves to have her pictures taken. She is really growing up lately--even big enough for pigtails!

Christmas 2012

We had a wonderful Christmas with Craig's family in North Carolina. The kids were a little more excited about Santa this year which was fun. Ethan got a new tricycle and Elizabeth got a baby doll stroller for her doll. Neither of them really knew what to do with their new toys but we are getting there:)

Sankt Nikolaus Tag

We had fun celebrating Sankt Nikolaus Tag this year with the kids. We had them leave their boots by the door and Sankt Nicolaus brought them some fun prizes! I realized after we all ate our candy and looked at the calendar that I was actually a day off. We must have been pretty good because he came to see us even though Mommy is going crazy and got her dates mixed up!

Three Years Old!

Three years ago this little boy came into our lives. Three years ago he made me a mommy; a name I respond to with great satisfaction. Three years ago our lives were forever changed for the better.  God blessed us with this perfect little boy who every day teaches me love, forgiveness, honesty, and lots and lots of patience. He is hilarious. He is charming (ask the older girls at church). He is my handsome little boy who keeps me on my toes, is fully potty trained, sings all his ABC's everywhere he goes, and pants like a puppy dog to every stranger we meet. I love him.

Now that he is old enough (and talking well enough) I wanted to interview him. Here was his response:

favorite color: purple--and always has been
favorite show or movie: Busy Town, Curious George
favorite food: beans and rice
favorite toy: puzzle and stuffed animals
favorite song: ABC's and Old McDonald
favorite book: Young McDonald
best friend: Corey (one of the young women at church) Callan, and Annie (and I would like to add Mommy and Daddy depending on the day:)
favorite place to go: Frying Pan Farm and North Carolina
profession of choice: Daddy

Ethan LOVES fuzz as you might remember so we got him an entire bin of fuzz for his birthday! He loved it needless to say!

Landscape Woes

We decided to get rid of our old bushes. They looked HORRIBLE. Unfortunately, they were like four miniature trees, that were 30 years old, and very well rooted--practically into the house. It took a real man to get this job done:) It looks considerably better now that we have planted new bushes and flowers.

Here she comes!

Look at the that crazy hair! I think the wind caught it just right!

Elizabeth has decided to walk now! I knew she could for a while now but just hasn't had the motivation. She saw some of her friends at church yesterday walking though and I think that did the trick. She stood up and took about 10 steps like she had just been waiting for the right moment to tell us all she actually already knew how! We were so happy that Craig was there for it since he missed Ethan's first steps because he was on a business trip. Although he did have to leave a few hours later--we were glad he could be there for the special moment:)

2012 Fall at the Farm

I love fall. I love the food, the colors, the final release from horrible hot humidity, the sudden disappearance of many bugs. Oh, I love it:)

This year as part of our celebration we went to the frying pan farm park fall festival.  We usually visit the farm about once a week, but this trip was extra special. They had all the old machinery up and working--including the massive apple cider press, the logger and lots of other exciting tools. We saw baby piglets just two days old--they were adorable! We enjoyed apples, honey, and a hilarious puppet show. If you have never been to the east for a fall festival you need to do it--seriously a highlight of the year. Here are some pictures of my adorable children enjoying themselves.