Party at our place!

Today we had our Sunday school class over to celebrate Memorial Day. It was so much fun! I was a bit nervous when I woke up to thunder this morning, but the rain cleared away and it stayed dry for the party. There were about 13 couples and 30 kids present. Our fenced in yard came in very handy today. I have to say the sandbox was a hit. Thanks for all of you who were able to come over and join us in the fun!

New routines

Now that we have settled into our new home I have adjusted my daily routine with the boys a bit. Matt got me a bike for Mother's day and we had gotten a bike trailor off of Craigs List as well. In the morning I put the boys in the trailer with thier pjs on, milk and dry cereal in hand and bug shield snapped on tight. It has been a great way to start the day and a fun way to sneak my exercise in.

Ready to ride!

Casey finished up his preschool year early when we moved and he has been done napping in the afternoon for quite sometime now. While Caleb is taking a nap in the afternoon Casey and I have starting something we call "learning time". I work with him for about 30-45 minutes on his letters, sounds, numbers, shapes, colors, and other preschool skills. We finish up our time with a game and then he goes and does quiet time on his own for a bit. It has been so much fun for me to work with him one on one. This is something I would have loved to do with all of my students back in my teaching years. Kids can learn so well when they are focused like that. I cherish this time with Casey.

Concentrating so hard as he traces numbers.

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Casey loves playing the animal memory game we made at ZOO class.

Princes and Princesses

My boys are so used to being surrounded by girls because my sister has 4 of them. I hope this means they will make great husbands someday, just like their daddy:)

My friend Heidi has 3 girls as well. We have been able to hang out with them quite a bit recently while Heidi goes to PT for her knee. Casey loves Ava and Caleb adores Ella. Now we just need to have another one to match up with Greta!
Casey and Ava...isn't she a little princess?!


Here are the love birds, Caleb and Ella.



Here's Greta, waiting for her prince charming.

friendships

We have been so blessed by our friendships in Change pointe (our Sunday school class). We have literally grown with them spiritually, as parents, as husbands, wives, and servants. Not only are they our best friends...there kids are Casey and Caleb's best friends. Here are some snapshots of some of the boys with some of their best buds from recent parties and play dates.

Here are the "3 musketeers" Casey, Eli and Connor digging through their goodie bags

Here is Casey showing Lilly his new bunk beds....don't worry, we kept the door open.

Some boys playing trains at our recent play date.

Calvin and Caleb playing cars. I took about 10 pictures of the two of them.
Cal smiled in every single one, Caleb ignored me.

Can you see why Casey loves Eli...just look at that face...so determined to get that candy.

Who wouldn't be in love with a girl who eats worms?
Did I mention how sweet she is? What a doll!

Thanks for all the fun memories friends!

outdoor fun in the sun

The past several days have been warmer than average for this time of year in Wisconsin. High 80's and a bit muggy. Needless to say we have had a lot of fun splashing and digging in our backyard. Here are just a few of the many snapshots I have taken recently.

It is so fun to sit back and watch the boys. They are so very different. Caleb prefers to slide in gently to the pool and land on his feet while Casey slides in upside down making sure that his whole body is submerged. While Casey swings on the glider, Caleb is hitting balls off the baseball tee. They do play similarly in the sandbox though...dig, scoop, and "accidentally" spill sand outside of the sandbox. This summer is going to be so much fun!

Weekend projects

Matt's parents were in town for a long weekend so we decided to get as much done as we could while we had extra hands and babysitters! Matt, his dad and Uncle Pat worked on our fence on Friday. Saturday morning they were able to finish it up. It is so nice to have a safe place for the boys to play.


Besides putting in the lattice fence they also put a chain link fence by the garage.




Matt also was able to put together the boy's new swing set. My favorite part is the attached trampoline. Caleb loves to jump.



Right now Matt is working on his garden!



Busy weekend!

Firewood anyone?

Today we decided to remove a tree from our backyard...well technically we decided last night. It was big, ugly, half dead, and smack in the middle of the yard. Our brother Nick and friend Jodi came over to help. Our new neighbor Kevin came over to observe (probably to make sure we didn't hit his house).

The saws were out and the men were in their element. I don't know what we would have done
without Jodi's guidebook and Nick's saw. Thanks guys for your help! More importantly, thanks for saving my house and my husband!

Boy's new room

The boys spent their first night in their freshly painted room on Thursday night. Casey is so excited to have bunk beds. If it were up to him he would sleep on the top bunk. As of now we keep the top bunk for quiet time in the afternoon. This works well because he is excited to have a quiet time!

Caleb really seems to enjoy hiding in the closet. It has a sliding door but you can walk into it. I guess you call it an "old school walkin closet". Other than that, he is still in his crib and Casey is still right across the room so not much has changed for him.