6 Boys -and- A Girl: August 2011

CCM

This summer, we were all about any activity that particularly appealed to our younger boys.

The children's museum - perfect!

Balls

The treehouse - Aidan's favorite:)

Waterworks - Luke's favorite along with the Little Sprouts "sandbox".

Dinosaurs

Blocks

Building skyscrapers

Construction workers

What a heavy load.

Trains

Can you tell that he never plays without sound effects;)

Feeding the fish and turtles

Truck driver

Every time he climbed into one of the vehicles, he would pause for a moment...

I watched him carefully to see what he was up to...

putting on his seatbelt:) :) :)

Aidan - 9 years old

Our 2 youngest sons

Luke, Mommy, and baby ______

(38 weeks and counting)

Counting our blessings:

On the way home, Patrick noticed that the Merc was much louder than normal and was pulling badly to the left. Over the next few miles, it continued to get worse. We pulled over to check the tires, suspecting a flat, but all appeared to be normal. We continued 1 more exit before deciding that it was NOT safe to go any further.

To make a long story short, the next morning the tow guy arrived to tow the Merc back to the shop. He drove it briefly and then informed us that there was nothing wrong with it other than a nail in one tire and only 2 lug nuts on another (supposed to have 5). YIKES!!!!

Blessing #1. The truck is not in need of another expensive repair.

Blessing #2. We were protected on the road and pulled over before the entire wheel dropped off.

Blessing #3. A knowledgeable tow guy

God is GOOD!!!

What a memorable day!!!

My friend in the window

Hummingbird feeder

As usual, it seemed to attract mostly females...

this little lady would perch outside my kitchen window on a branch near the ground, making it quite impossible to see her unless one climbed on the counter (the boys) or perched on their tippy toes (me).

To our great surprise, this guy showed up a few weeks ago, and boy, does he have character.

He loves to hang out, peering at me through the window with his little head tilting from side to side.

He is super curious and confident!!!

And he is the KING.

Each morning, I initially find him on top of the feeder, jealously guarding it from any other Hummingbirds who would dare to approach "his feeder".

Between observing me and chasing off his competition, he sure is one busy guy.

Swim 2011

With it being incredibly hot this summer, I was not able to attend many meets.

So the one opportunity I had, I made sure to grab a few shots.

BTW, Aidan did an awesome job and walked away from finals with 3 golds (medley relay, butterfly, and freestyle relay), 1 silver (backstroke), and 1 bronze (freestyle)

- definitely a proud parent moment:)

Waiting his turn.

Swimmers take your mark...

Beep

Go, Aidan, GO

He has really grown a lot this summer.

Luke William

Although if you were to ask him what his name is,

he would respond, "Wukie."

Cleaning out my closet, I came across this Tuxedo and didn't have to look too far for a model.

He was duly impressed and has asked to wear it on several different occasions:)

I also came across this:

He was NOT AT ALL impressed and adamantly refuses to wear it;)

Since Aidan was not back from the swim meet, he chose to sleep in the music room next to me.

I always use a yoga/fitness/balance ball to sit on while working at the computer.

To my surprise, he grabbed this ball (just the perfect size for him) and joined me.

TOO cute!

Big bubbies brought him this gift home from Canada.

He couldn't wait for them to arrive.

I love the way he practically sits on the back of Drew's basketball shoes as he squats to control his truck.

(These are his favorite shoes to wear outdoors, because it keeps him from any contact with the grass.)

Luke's 4th Birthday

Where is my baby?

Well, he is STILL my baby, but you know what I mean.

He has grown and matured so much in just the last few months, that I often catch myself glancing his way twice and being surprised that my baby is really becoming a big boy.

And just in time, with his new little brother to arrive before too awfully long.