Sunday Afternoon

I love Sunday afternoons. Once we're home from church, after a good lunch, the kids usually nap and Joel and I get some down-time. I love to cut coupons, watch a movie, or get a nap. It's like a mini-vacation from a hectic week, ha!

I feel like, between the kids and I...we were sick for almost the entire month of January. First, baby M got the croupy coughing nasty cold stuff (yes, that is my official medical diagnosis). It lasted for 10 days. Then, P got it. Next, P got staph infection. And M got pinkeye. Then I got pinkeye from M--both eyes for baby and Mommy!...Fun times. Then, I got the hacky cough/nasty cold & sinus misery...It lasted just over a week. I've decided that just having one more child, it's harder for us all to stay healthy around here. If M picks up something, P gets it...If P comes down with something, it's hard to keep him away from his little Sister...He loves to kiss her and be in her face, trying to make her laugh, etc. That is not an ideal way to stop the spread of germs, and so she gets sick. I am a self-proclaimed "germaphobe" so this is hard for my hand-sanitizer loving self to handle. :)

We also went to Iowa this month to meet our new niece...She is so sweet! M seemed like a giant next to her though, and she's only 6 months older than her new cousin. It's crazy how fast babies grow. My baby is no longer a scrunched-up newbie...She's a growing girl that rolls over, loves her baby food (and puffs), already has her first tooth (middle, bottom) and shakes her head back and forth at us, so funny!

Hope everyone has a fantastic Sunday afternoon (and a great week to follow too!)



M, trying out cantaloupe for the first time...yum!

Catching Up

Still in my mind...is a Christmas post! I wanted to get this done before the end of January, so here goes! :)

We had family staying with us through Christmas. Nine different relatives stayed with us for 6 nights in a row! It was busy...but fun! P was sad when the last of our relatives had gone--he said, "Our house is more fun--with kids!" He enjoyed playing with the 3 kiddos that were here over Christmas.

Here's a few photos:

Daddy set up P's new Handy Manny Crane playset.


Big girl sitting in her Bumbo! I love how her little hand is over her mouth, like she's giggling. :)


Picture I took of the kids and I. M is wearing her "My First Christmas" outfit!

Seven Years

So...I'm a little behind but on December 20th, Joel and I celebrated 7 years of marriage. I can't believe how fast 7 years has gone. I love him more now than I did the day we were married. I've heard that said before, that people were more in love after years of marriage, but didn't understand how it could be true. Then, I realized...that life happens. And with it, we experienced pregnancy woes, births, a miscarriage, financial difficulties, job changes, moves, stress, training children, growing in Christ, laughing at funny things our children do--kind of like a zillion inside jokes, all of those things bring us closer. And cause me to love this man more. This man who works so hard to provide for our family...He's such a smart, loving, devoted, loyal man. I'm proud of him. And I'm so glad to be his wife. :)

We celebrated our Anniversary by eating at a boatyard cafe down on the water. It was completely romantic. Our waitress even brought our bread arranged in the shape of a heart. With pecan butter. It was amazing. I had raspberry chicken and Joel and I shared a fantastic piece of chocolate cake--that the waitress brought us free of charge, because she knew we were celebrating. She earned a good tip. :) After dinner, we strolled around downtown. Everything was lit up in white Christmas lights. Breathtaking. We went in to a few shops to warm up. I tried on a gorgeous leather coat at a leather goods store. Realized it was over $2,000. Carefully unzipped it and hung it back up. Yikes! We also got to watch some ice-skaters. It was a great evening.




Our lovely bread basket. Sadly...there are no pictures of the chocolate cake. Perhaps it was devoured too quickly? :)


Indiana Joel?