First day of school

The girls started school yesterday. Ella is in second grade and Emily is in Kindergarten. Its hard to believe they are both in school now. They had a great time making new friends and catching up with old ones. The homework started right away for them. They both looked adorable in their pink and brown outfits. Emily has the same teacher that Ella had in Kindergarten. There is a picture below of each of them sitting on the same carpet on their first day of Kindergarten.

august 2009

august 2007 Ella's first day of kindergarten

Weekend in Alabama

We spent last weekend in Birmingham, Alabama for my younger cousin Chris's wedding. He married a sweet, beautiful girl named Amber. My girls were flower girls in the wedding. They were, of course, very beautiful. We had a great time seeing family and spending time together.


On Friday, Jacob turned 7 months old. He has been sitting up on his own, crawling around like an army man, babbling like crazy, saying dada, smiling and laughing a lot, enjoying pretty much any food he is given, sucking his thumb and just being a complete joy to have around. I say it every month, but it is just going by so fast.


On our way home from Birmingham, we stopped in Auburn and visited the University. It is a beautiful town and college campus. We enjoyed our time frolicking around the campus. We stopped at the bookstore to purchase some auburn paraphernalia, we have not switched teams though, still a Gator household. Over all it was a wonderful vacation and a great way to wrap up summer time.

8 years!

Today, with a few more wrinkles, gray hair, and an added few pounds Nels and I celebrate eight years of wedded bliss. Its hard to believe that we are already at 8, it really has flown by and it has been wonderful. In the last eight years we have moved 4 times, had 3 beautiful children, lost(until we meet face to face in Heaven) 2 precious babes, been to Hawaii, Zambia, Senegal, a cruise and various other locations, rode our bikes 160 miles in 2 days, and many many many more exciting adventures. We met 11 years ago and started dating 9 years ago. We love being outdoors, camping, hiking, boating, surfing, fishing, playing with the kids. We have lots of fun together, most of which is spent laughing. Our cup runs over and we are blessed beyond belief. Love you babe! Looking forward to many more incredible years together.

Wild and wet Thursday

What a perfect day for water games. It has been so hot here and there was no rain in sight this afternoon, so playing on slip and slides was a great way to beat the heat. We have just one more day of clubs and then Power Surge! I am so impressed with how the team is still so energized when they arrive at the house everyday. I have been beat since Monday afternoon, and I am only doing this once a day, the team does three clubs a day. They also do such a wonderful job when presenting the gospel to these kids. I am not sure if there have been any decisions made yet by the kids in our club, but they are hearing a clear message of who Jesus Christ was and is and how much He loves them.

Nels was playing balloon toss with the kids and he dove for it and saved the balloon!

Wild West Wednesday

Laundry and a sleepover

OK, I know every mom thinks that her baby is the best, but really mine is! He helps me do the laundry and he is only six months old. Seriously is he not the cutest thing you have ever seen. Tonight he is on his very first sleep over with grandma and grandpa. I think he will do just fine, but I am missing him. One day he really will not appreciate these pictures of him with his sister's panties on his head, but for now we can all enjoy.

Power Up Clubs Day Two

We had another amazing day at Power Up Clubs. It was bring a friend day, so we saw a lot of new faces. Praise the Lord for great weather, a great team, and open hearts! Here is our day in pictures.