Birthday Boys

My how time flies. My cute little boy who loves to cuddle is growing up. Garrett is turning 11 on Monday.

Garrett and Eric celebrated their birthdays together yesterday.

Brian was a good sport entertaining Lindsay while the boys did boy stuff.


The boys stayed up late to watch Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. After Lindsay finished decorating Brian she made it clear that she wasn't interested in watching the movie by falling asleep on the couch. Kimberly tried to stay up, but she gave up about halfway through and found a comfy spot in the middle of the floor.

Happy Birthday to two wonderful young men!

Pumpkin Pickin'

Lindsay and I spent the day at Huber's with her second grade class.

It didn't take Lindsay long to find her perfect pumpkin.

Lindsay shivered in the storage cooler, but I thought it was a nice break from the heat in this unusual fall weather we have been having.

I absolutely LOVE fall. I can't think of anything I would have rather done with my day than to spend it with my favorite second grader soaking up the outdoors.

R U READY for some Football ?????

G O C A R D S ! ! !

Future Cardinal ? ? ? ? ?

(Almost) Music to My Ears

Today was Garrett's first day with his (rented) trombone. He has been itching to play in the band at school even though he has no experience. In fact, the only music training he has had so far is "Brian's basics" at church music camp and following a Youtube video to memorize 2 songs on the keyboard. --You've gotta start somewhere right! He has a true love for music and I can't wait to see him grow in his abilities. For now, pray for our ears. Practice will be long and loud for awhile I'm sure!~

The Mommy Bouquet

Lindsay picked me this awesome bouquet of gorgeous flowers from the yard. She knows I love fresh-cut flowers even though I don't often buy them and even at her young age she often thinks more of others than herself. She loves to make people smile and frequently brings home random gifts for different members of the family. She always has a way of brightening my day, but I am especially fond of her personally designed bouquets. There is nothing in this world that compares to the beauty of a fist-full of love, hand-picked especially for you.

God's Front Yard Makeover

While it took Robby several days of hard work to complete his recent makeover of our front porch, God's front yard makeover was completed in a matter of seconds.

Even on it's side, our tree is taller than average.

We were surprised at the root system that supported this massive tree.

The view from our front door. It still shocks me every time I see it.

The kids have always wanted to be able to climb this tree.

The first mound of leaves in the road is our neighbors Bradford Pear tree that split into 3 pieces a few minutes before our tree went down.

We were lucky enough to have our electricity restored the next day. The kids have enjoyed being out of school (although I have still had school EVERY DAY!), and the tree was a source of entertainment for all the neighborhood kids for a few days. The city came at 2:30 this morning with chainsaws in hand. They cleared the road by cutting the tree into sections and pushing it to either side of the road. I think it will be awhile before we get it all cleaned up.