Suckers!

Finally posting these fun pictures from March. 
The kiddos had a grand time with some pretty grand suckers!

(this was Lucas's first taste of candy!)

Red Eye

I am not going to be taking Samuel's 3-year-old pictures for a while yet, as you can see from this snapshot, our big boy has some pretty good allergy issues to overcome first!  Poor thing will be on allergy meds until at least June and we are treating his eyes specifically. 
We hope he feels better soon!

Support

Emma's school is in the midst of their main fundraising event for the year.  

 We believe in this school and are so thankful that Emma has had the opportunity to go there the last two years.  We hope that Lucas and Samuel will also have the chance to being their school careers with the excellent academic and Christian foundation CCS provides.

For more information about this ministry and their current needs, please follow this link to Emma's fundraising page:  Changing lives, one child at a time

Samuel is 3!

Samuel had a wonderful birthday!  

 He got to go with Daddy and Emma to the Father's breakfast at Nathan's school, then took Emma to school and went to pick out a balloon with Daddy!

  After that he had some QT with Mom and Lucas, lunch (complete with a special popcorn snack), his usual nap, and then off to Grandma's for his party!  

Trying to figure out how to make "pre" {three} with his fingers (If you remember how he did two with both pointers, three gets a bit confusing):

 He requested mac-n-cheese, hotdogs, and corn on the cob for dinner!  Aunt LuAnne joined us for his party!  He could hardly keep his hands off of his cake (seriously, Aunt LuAnne had to hold him back!)

How is he THREE already?!

Nathan, Emma, and Lucas helped him celebrate THREE in a BIG way!  What fun!

Battle of the Books!

We are SO proud of you Nathan!

Photos from a visit to the park last week...

Painted Lady

There have been many face painting opportunities in Emma's 5 1/2 years, and she has emphatically said no to all (since the one when she was 2 years old and didn't really know what was up):

She surprised me the other night at a school function when she appeared with her class and had a bright red heart painted on her cheek!  She was SO proud!

First pick

Can't get enough of you...

A great photograph is one that fully expresses what one feels, in the deepest sense, about what is being photographed. 

- Ansel Adams

Then and Now

THEN (April 2008)

Now (April 2012)

 

"Blowing"

Admiring...

Considering...

Attempting...

Maybe next time...

Family Rides

We've taken a lot of bike rides lately as a family.  This is always a huge ordeal and I'd love to be someone along the way watching our crew go down the road-- we are a sight!  There's "two seater" as Emma calls it, that is her trailer bike attached to my bike...

 And she generally has a tag-a-long in her basket...

Then there's Nathan on his bike

And Dad on his bike, with Lucas in the child seat and Samuel riding along in the trailer attached at the back.  They all love it!

These were taken on different days.  I didn't get one of Samuel in the trailer!  I'll have to do that sometime!

Lucas, new little artist

Lucas got some new crayons in his Easter basket, so last week we let him try them out.  He did a great job for his first time coloring a picture all on his own!  He really enjoyed himself!

 He was not crazy about the taste of the crayon wrapper...

Wikki Cross

The older kids got Wikki stix in their Easter baskets.  Emma made several things right away.  A few days later she made Jesus on the cross...

Sweetness

Some sweetness from Easter afternoon...