lily and sam

Matt, Kim and Lily have been visiting for Christmas for the past week. Sam and Lily are having a ball together! Sam can't wait to wake Lily up in the morning and they will play as long as you let them. And the best part... they play GREAT together! They love chasing each other or fixing things with their tools. They will play in Sam's room or living room or downstairs, doesn't matter, as long as they are together. Sam normally gets a bath every night (hey, he's a boy!) and one night Lily jumped in there with him and they played in there together for forever. I had to warm the water up twice! The night before they were leaving we let Sam stay up late and play with Lily a little extra. The next morning when Sam woke up Lily was already gone and he was sad. Every couple days he would ask where Lily was and why she wasn't there. I know that he can't wait to see Lily again!

Bath Pictures Here!

Cute Video Here!

christmas day!!!!

The kids actually slept in longer that I thought they would, which was a GREAT thing (since I did not get to bed until after 1:00am). Sam kinda woke up like it was a normal morning, but he was excited about something, I just don't think he really knew what. Andy reminded him it was Christmas morning and that we needed to go downstairs and see if Santa came. Then he got really excited! He made sure Jacob was awake and busted into Ben's room to wake him up. We made it downstairs and Lily was sleeping on the fold out couch in the living room, so Sam made sure she woke up too. Within minutes kids were ripping into presents and throwing wrapping paper all over! It took about an hour for everything to be opened (except for Ben's stuff - which some of it was not opened for days). The kids were very happy and were playing with all their new toys for the rest of the morning. It was a great morning and a lot of fun. Loud and full of energy... just like Christmas morning should be.

Later in the day Rob, Patti, Kelsey and Lucy come over and we had a nice dinner and opened even more presents!

I put more stories about each of the kids on their own blog pages - links are at the top of this page.)

Christmas morning pictures are here!

Christmas afternoon pictrues are here!

christmas eve with pam's family

Tonight we went over my sister Becky's home and celebrated Christmas with my family. We had a really nice evening and the boys got some awesome toys! Sam even got the same fire engine from Grandpa and Grandma that Santa was suppose to bring him that night! Sam just LOVED it! Jacob got some books, Legos and gift cards and was very happy! Ben got some of his own trucks that light up and make noise. Afterwards we took the kids back home and snuggled them into bed, before I headed back out with the midnight service with my parents and sisters. It was a nice relaxing evening and we had a really nice night!

You can see all the pictures here!

making christmas cookies

Sam is certainly at one of the perfect age's for Christmas time. And everything is revolving around making sure that Santa is coming and we have everything ready for him! This of course includes making cookies! Since I wanted it to be a fun experience for Sam I waited until Ben was taking a nap. Jacob would joined in the "fun" (don't know that he is really into this kind of stuff anymore) but him and Andy went to the movies and escaped. Sam and I just made simple sugar cookies. I had some leftover green food coloring (Sam's favorite color) so we made some of the frosting green and Sam heaped that on the cookies as best he could. He also made sure they had lots of sprinkles! We also made two snowman, one for Jake and one for Sam. Of course they were left out before he went to bed with some milk and carrots for the reindeer. Santa said that they just delightful...

more pictures here

ben's birthday

I have finally updated Ben's blog and added birthday pictures... check them out on his blog here!

just playing around

Just thought I would take a couple updated pictures of Sam and Ben playing around. At night they normally will play in Sam and Jacob's room for a little bit before taking a bath. Tonight Sam was "fixing" his bed and Ben was just happy to be naked! Enjoy some pictures here!

you know it's a bad day when...

your three year old wants to show Daddy the cake for his brother's first birthday. But you are not really paying attention to exactly what he was doing (you are trying to get dinner ready and everything else ready for the birthday party for the next day), you hear, "Daddy, Daddy, look what we got," and you know he is in the dining room. You don't think much of it... until you hear "thump." Silence... crying from your three year old... you don't want that sound to be what you think that sound is... and you ever so slowly walk into the dining room... to only confirm that sound it what you thought it was. Your son's first birthday cake is frosting side down, smooshed on the floor. Your three year old, "I didn't do it on purpose, it was only an accident," with sad puppy dog eyes. Your husband consoles him, while you have to turn away, you know it was an accident (he really did think he could carry that cake over to the kitchen to show Daddy), but you are still steaming mad! Of course it just puts the icing on the cake to the "wonderful" day you have all day...

...thank goodness, the local grocery store was able to make another cake and have it ready by 8:00 the next morning.

trick or treat! (smell my feet)

Sam was soooo excited for Halloween this year! He talked about it for weeks and weeks. He changed his costume every week. First he wanted to be a firefighter, then he was set on a storm trooper fro Star Wars. He talked about being a Power Ranger and Batman too. But in the end (a few days before Halloween) he wanted to be a witch. Yes, my son wanted to be a witch. So we made it work. Ben of course had no idea of what Halloween was or what was going to happen. And he had no choice of what his costume was going to be and so he was a mouse. The weather was actually pretty nice, so the kids didn't have to wear coats and boats over their costumes. There was a house that we drove by everyday on the way to Sam's school and they had a huge Halloween display and Sam could not wait to go trick or treating at the "Halloween House." So we went trick or treating in that neighborhood. Of course Sam was super scared of the house once we walked up to it and Andy had to carry him up to get a piece of candy. We went around the whole neighborhood and after about 5 houses Sam was really getting the trick or treating down. He got a lot of candy and had a ton of fun. Ben spent most of the time in the stroller but did get to walk up to a couple houses. No one could figure out Ben's costume, most people thought he was a bear and he was called a girl several times! and Sam's loved say, "Trick or Treat, Smell my Feet." Cracked him up every time!

Lot of pictures here.

pumpkin carving

After we got done playing in the leaves and getting my crazy picture done, the boys went to work on the pumpkins. Andy did all the craving, Jacob picked out all the pumpkins seeds (which he just loves). Sam watched mostly, he wanted to help, but didn't want to touch that yucky stuff (he gets that from his mom). Ben really had no idea what they were doing, but he did know that he saw some bright orange things out of his reach and he wanted to check them out! Andy did a great job craving the pumpkins and I think that they all had a lot of fun! See all the pictures here!

that last picture (and playing in the leaves)

There was one final fall picture I just had to get to make my photo book for the year. I had planned to get this picture while at the cider mill, but the first time we went it was just Sam and Ben (this picture had to have all three kids). The second time we went to the cider mill, we had just finished with family pictures and Sam was not in the picture taking mood. And there were mosquitoes everywhere down the path that I like to take the picture at. I had thought about trying to get back up to the cider mill again today, but it didn't look like the weather was going to cooperate with me. It was cloudy, then it started to rain. But while the kids were eating lunch the sun started to come out, Andy said maybe we could head up to this Christmas Village down the road to take the picture (but that just was not the "scene" that I wanted for my picture). There was a nice large area in the backyard that might work. But it was still really wet out from the rain. I said screw it, so the kids get a little dirty, I want my picture! After lunch I started to get them dressed in their "cider mill" outfits. Meanwhile it starting hailing outside! But I saw a huge patch on sun on the way too. The kids thought I was crazy, Andy started to think I was a little crazy too! But as I finished fixing up Jacob's hair the hail went away and the sun came out. All the kids were in a great mood (once we told them they could play in the leaves!). And I got the picture I wanted (actually I got quite a few that turned out good)! It's the cover for my photo albums and it just has to match the previous years (I am so anal about these things!). Afterwards we let the kids play in the leaves for a little bit. Jacob and Sam had fun throwing leaver all over each other. Ben kept trying to walk through them, but kept falling down and getting frustrated. You can see all the pictures here, but below is that one picture I wanted...

pumpkins and apples

Today we got together my with family for our annual apple picking and pumpkin hunting day. We had another very nice day (just like last year) although it was a little on the warm side for mid October. Jacob and Sam loved the inflatable bounce thing and slide. Ben got to walked around with his Aunts and Grandma. And we got to meet Jeanette's boyfriend Dave, who is a very nice guy. We had some donuts and cider of course and picked some apples and the kids got some pumpkins. We took the annual family picture, which turned out really good, thanks to Dave! All the pics are here.

cider mill

After the wonderful time we had taking family pictures, we decided to head up to the cider mill. That was about as fun as family pictures! Of course the kids had to change into their cider mill outfits (come on... you know me!). But they look so cute that way! The donuts and cider were great as always and Ben is really getting the hang of eating donuts! The bees were out this time though and Sam was in one his moods. We took a short walk down the trail, short because the mosquitoes were out! They were all over the kids and Andy and I just couldn't take anymore of squatting them off everyone. I got some cute pictures of course! Hopefully we will have another chance to go in two weeks and it will be a little bit better.

family pictures (yeah right!)

So we attempted to do family pictures at the park today. It was a little warmer than I would have wanted it to be (the kids were wearing sweaters and jeans for their pictures) and there were barely any clouds (making it hard to find a spot without any shadows). Jeanette met us up at the park to take the pictures (two years ago, I did the set the timer and run into the picture at the last minute thing, which does not really work). I really figured that Ben would be my problem child. Being that he is only eleven months and in the stage of not wanting to sit still for anything. And you never know if he is going to be in a good mood or change in two seconds and be screaming. But, Ben was in a great mood and laughing before we even really started pictures. Sam on the other hand, was not having any part in taking pictures. He had some sticks he wanted to play with and gosh darn it, that is what he wanted to do. As soon as we took those sticks away he was mad! He face was either shoved in Andy's lap or his hands were over his eyes. Sometimes he would just turn his face the other way. I think we got one or two of his looking at the camera with a semi-smile (of course those would be the pictures were one or two of the rest of us were not looking at the camera). Jacob was great and except for trying to not bust out laughing at his brothers, kept smiling the whole time. We got some funny shots and it will be another family picture taking experience that we will laugh about later. I did get some fabulous pictures of each of the boys by them selves (you can these through the link below or at their separate blogs-links at the top) and a couple of all three of them together. Hey, at least we spent some time all together, that counts for something right?!?! (links to all the pictures are below)















family pictures
three boys
jacob (11 years)
sam (3 years)
ben (11 months)

first taste of fall

Today we stopped in at Yates Cider Mill for our first taste of some donuts and cider. This was Ben's first trip ever to the cider mill. He loved watching all the people. And he loved his donut! I think he ate almost the whole thing! Sam also loved the donuts and apple cider. We took a short walk along the path and enjoyed the beginning of the fall weather. I know we will be back a few more times before the season is over. Some pictures here.

playing together

Sam and Ben having started playing together! Normally Ben just likes to watch Sam play and will sometimes crawl over and see what he is doing. But then Sam normally gets mad that Ben is in his way and playing with what he is playing with. For the past couple days, after dinner Sam asks if him and Ben can play "Halloween." I have not really figured out what he is doing or why it is called Halloween, but I know his imagination is hard at work. Sam moves the cushions all over on the couch and does various things with them or pretends the couch is various different things. He helps Ben get on the couch as well , which Ben just LOVES to be able to do. And they play together for about 20-30 minutes while I clean up dinner. I love being able to get dinner cleaned up without little feet under me. And of course I love the fact that they are starting to play together and that Sam actually wants to play with Ben! Hopefully this is the start of a great brotherly bond! Couple pics.

starting the fall fun stuff!

Today we went to the annual Barn Daze at Friendship Park. This is the third year we have went. The first year it was freezing cold and the kids really couldn't do anything. Last year and this year it was pretty warm and perfect blue skies. Sam had a great time, he LOVES the huge inflatable slides and tunnels and bounce thing. He did those over and over again, until his face was beat red and we had to force him to sit down and drink some water! Sam also loved the hay maze and ran around in there for almost 30 minutes (it only take about 2 minutes to make it through the maze!). There was not much for Ben to do, but we did let him out of the stroller and crawl around a little bit where we could (this is one of those times where I wish he was walking, it would have been a little bit more fun for him then). Sam and Daddy had a snow cone at the end and Sam just loved that. Both kids were exhausted by the time we left and took a nice nap in the car on the way home. Some more pics here!

hanging out with the animals

I had today off, since Ed and Lynda are still in Indiana for a family reunion. And I figured since most kids are back to school today that the zoo would be a great place to visit. Sam has not been there at all this year and he just loves the zoo. It was going to be on the warm side, so we got there early in hopes that we would see more of the animals. Becky also came and brought Julia and Joey. Sam just loved having Joey there to run around with! We saw a lot of animals and I think that the kids had a great time! Sam's favorite were the penguins, I even got him a new stuffed animal penguin before we left. I think Joey's favorite was the snakes and Aunt Becky got him a pretend one too! Even Ben got to get out of the stroller at the end and crawl around outside of the butterfly house and check out the salt water fish tank. Of course pictures here!

first day of school

Today is Jake's first day of middle school in the sixth grade. I can't believe he is out of the elementary school and growing up so fast! I can't wait to hear how his first day went!

Today is also Andy's first day starting the nursing program at OCC. He is a full time college student now and he is determined to keep his 4.0 GPA in this program.

Tomorrow is Sam's first day at a new pre-school. And he seems very excited about it!

I hope that everyone first days go great!!!

happy labor day!

We had a nice relaxing morning on this labor day. Jake went back to his mom's around noon. He has at his dad's since last Sunday and Sam and him have just had so much fun together. Andy needed some quiet time to prepare for his first day back to college tomorrow for the fall semester. Sam, Ben and I went to my parent's for a casual dinner. Becky brought Joey and Julie with her and Sam had a ton of fun playing with them in the pool. Doesn't feel like it should be the end of the summer already, but school starts tomorrow so I guess it is. But I fall is my favroite time of the year, so I am looking forward to that! Some pictures from the day here...

fire man sam

Sam got to visit the local fire station today! He is so into fire engines lately.
Check it all out at his blog!

new look and photo books

So, I got bored... well not really bored, just didn't want to be doing what I should be doing! Anyways, I changed the look of the blog around (I didn't realize how many options there were out there or how time consuming this was going to be!). But I think this looks a little cleaner and nicer, and so it's pretty much done. I might make some minor changes as I post more, but that is just normal for me.

And I have discovered online photo books. I knew they were out there, but never really looked into them very much until someone brought one that they made into work. I was hooked! I made my first album from a recent trip to Mackinac Island and can't wait for it's arrival in the mail. I have also started several other books. What I love most about these is that I can ditch all that scrap booking stuff... the paper, scissors, stickers, templates, cutters, page protectors, and more. Best of all I can make a book while in bed watching a movie! I made a small sidebar for these photo books so everyone can view them online.

So enjoy the new blog and let me know what you think!

happy birthday becky!

Today is Becky's 31st birthday! Sam, Ben and I meet up with her and my parents for dinner. We had a nice quiet dinner and she opened her gifts. Hope you had a great birthday Becky!
Here are some pictures.

yummy ice cream

My parents took Becky and I to Cook's Farm Dairy at LOT when we were younger and I have some great childhood memories eating ice cream here. I just loved the Mint Chocolate Chip (and still do!). I love that this place is still around and I can now take my own kids there. It had been a few years since Jacob has been there and within the first lick of ice cream (mint chocolate chip of course) he remembered how good it is! This was Sam and Ben's first visit. Sam got cotton candy blue ice cream and he was in heaven! Since Ben is still too young for ice cream (and they don't have frozen yogurt) he just had a couple lick of Daddy's. But he got one lick and was eyeing Daddy for another one! He loved it too. (we kinda paid for it later when he got a little sick, thank goodness we only gave him a little bit!) My niece went with us and she said it was awesome ice cream too! We only live about 10 minutes from there, so I hope the kids will have as many memories from there as I do when they get older! Lot of messy ice cream faces pictures here!

brothers for sure!

While on the ferry to Mackinac this past Friday I took a picture of Sam with the wind blowing right in his face. When I loaded the pictures onto the computer I was looking at it more and I remembered that I had a similar picture of Jacob when he was about 4 or 5 years old. I dug out the picture (it was not digital, so this meant digging through some boxes and finding the right photo album - thank goodness for the Internet now and being able to find pictures with just the click of a mouse!). The pictures are exactly the same! There is no doubt that they are brothers for sure!

up north weekend

We went up north to my parents house in Houghton Lake for a long weekend. We were just up there for Fourth of July and the kids loved it, so we thought we could come back again. We rented a boat one day on Houghton Lake. My mom stayed at the house with Ben since I didn't think he would have much fun on the boat. So Ben and Grandma got to spend some time together. Jacob, Sam, Andy and I had a nice time on the boat. Although it took a long time to dock anywhere, including a sandbar, which took us almost an hour to get the boat up to so that the kids could get off and play at the beach. Friday we went up to Mackinac Island. We have not been there for several years and this was Sam and Ben's first time there. Jacob loves Mackinac Island, as do Andy and I. It's just such a pretty place and so relaxed. We had a nice time there. The kids loved throwing rocks in the water and playing around. We had a nice time just walking around and taking in the sights. Jacob loved the little shops and checking everything out inside them. Sam loved all the horses and had to point out every single one. Ben just hung out in the stroller and loved the breeze! And of course I took a ton of pictures (and had the kids wear matching outfits!). Saturday we went over the Higgins Beach South State Park and had a great time just hanging out on the beach. The kids just played in the sand and water. Even Ben played with the sand a little bit this time. We was really nice to get away and we really had a great weekend!


Pictures...
Boatin'
Mackinac Island
Higgins Beach

happy birthday kelsey

We celebrated Kelsey's 13th birthday today (although her birthday was really over a month ago!). I can't believe she is officially a teenager! We went over to Rob and Patti's in the afternoon for a BBQ. The kids had a great time with some water guns and the water hose! It was a pretty hot day, so it was a great way to keep them cool and outside! It was a nice afternoon, thanks guys! Here are some pictures!

happy fourth of july

This weekend we went up north to my parents house in Houghton Lake. We had a really nice time. It was nice to all spend time together and not have to be anywhere at a certain time. To just forget about the daily routine of life for awhile! The kids had a ton of fun at the beaches and we went for lots of walks and bike rides. The weather could not have been more perfect. It rained on the way there and then it was lots of sun and the perfect temperature the entire time we were there. Here are some (okay a lot) of pictures from the weekend.

Happy Father's Day

This morning Jake and Sam gave Andy his Father's Day gifts, which included two new outfits and a coffee mug. They also gave him one of those new singing cards from Hallmark and recorded their voices on it saying Happy Father's Day. (I think those cards are so cute, captures the youngness of their voices to hear over and over again!) Later in the afternoon, Sam, Ben and I went to my Grandparents to visit with my Dad. Andy and Jake went to the movies and saw the new Hulk movie. HAPPY FATHER'S DAY ANDY, Dad and Ed! Here are some pictures from my grandparents.

Meeting Great Grandma

Mamwa came over for a short visit this afternoon. We have not seen her for almost a year, so it was a well overdue visit. She also meet Ben for the first time. Ben was very comfortable with her and laughed with her and tried to grab her glasses of course! Sam didn't really remember her, but warmed up to her right away. Jacob of course remembered her and gave her a big hug right away. It was really nice to see Mamwa again and hopefully we will see her again at the end of summer. Here are some more pictures.

Happy Memorial Day!

We had a nice relaxing weekend Memorial weekend. Nothing much was planned and we got to spend a lot of time outside. Today we hung out at home for the morning, then visited the park for a little bit. Sam loved playing in the sandbox and swinging. Ben loved laying on the blanket feeling the breeze on his face and he went in the swing for his first time. Ed and Lynda made some burgers and brats on the grill to finish the weekend off. It was a great weekend! Some pictures from the park are here.

New Biking Style

Today we got the bikes out and the new bike stroller for Sam and Ben. We are leaving some of the bikes at my sister Becky's condo in Downtown Rochester. So we packed up the bikes and picked up some lunch at Subway. We then we to the Rochester Park and had a nice picnic lunch while Sam played on the swings and slides and Ben laid on the blanket trying the catch the breeze. It was perfect weather, mid seventies and sunny, it really couldn't be any nicer. Sam and Ben seemed to be getting a little cranky, so we packed up and headed down the Paint Creek bike trail for a nice bike ride. Sam and Ben fell asleep about half an hour into riding and took a nice long nap. The new stroller is perfect for these two little ones. They can see everything and can also relax and play too. Andy and I biked for over 10 miles and it was really nice finally get the bikes back out again and casually ride them. Afterwards we went back to Becky's and took a nice walk downtown and had dinner. It was a perfect day! More pictures here.

Sam's 3rd Birthday

Sam had a very nice 3rd birthday. Just some quiet parties, but still lots of gifts. You can see all the pictures at his blog here.

Opps... Accident

On the way home today the car got a little boo-boo. It was raining and the car in front of me slammed on his brakes. Needless to say I couldn't stop fast enough and BAM hit the car in front of me. Did a decent amount of damage to the car, but it's still drivable... kinda. Of course I got a ticket which sucks.

Mother's Day Weekend

Saturday night Sam and Ben spent the night with their Grandpa and Grandma and Aunt Jeanette, so that Andy and I could have a whole night kid free! It was very nice and the kids had a great time with their grandparents. Sunday we meet up at my Grandparent's house for dinner and a couple birthday celebrations. It was a nice weekend both without and with the kids! I am so thank for the beautiful and healthy children that I have. They give me more joy than I could ever imagine. Hope all the Mom's, Grandma's and Aunts had a wonderful Mother's Day! Here some pictures to check out!

6 Years...

Can you believe that Andy and I have been married for six years? Yes, we have! I couldn't be happier either. We have a wonderful love for each other. And we have made a wonderful beautiful family together! Another year and we hit that seven year mark!

Spring Pictures

Jake, Sam and Ben got their annual spring pictures taken today.
Here is the link. (if you have to enter a password it is 1050.)

No Pictures Today

The boys were suppose to get their annual spring pictures taken today. And everyone was looking really good, no bumps, bruises or scratches on their faces. Until..... less than 24 hours before pictures this happens....













Needless to say pictures were re-scheduled for next weekend.

Earth Day

Today is Earth Day. A day set aside to inspire awareness of and appreciation for the Earth's environment. There are several very small change you can make in your daily life to help our Earth's environment. Some of these changes you can see results immediately, like replacing conventional light bulbs with compact fluorescents and recycle household appliances and replace them with efficient Energy Star options (your energy bill will cost you less). Things like, getting your name removed from junk mail lists (which you can do here) and pay bills electronically with online, direct bill pay services. Doing these things will preserve millions of trees. Here are a couple more web-sites of simple thing you can do to protect this Earth.

Make EveryDay Earth Day
Ideal Bite
Earth Day Network
Green Mom Finds

You might not think that doing these things will directly impact you, but they will impact your children and grandchildren and great grandchildren and don't you want them to have the same resources from the Earth that you did?

Good-Bye Matt, Kim & Lily

Matt, Kim and Lily are leaving this week to head off to their new home in Phoenix, Arizona. They have been staying at Ed & Lynda's the past week to spend some extra time with the family. Sam and Lily have been having a great time together and I think are going to miss each other a lot. Lily loves watching Ben too and is always asking where he is. We are all going to miss them very much. We wish you guys lots of luck out there! And hopefully soon we will be able to make a visit to see you! Here are some pictures of their new house. And here are some pictures of Lily and her cousins from the past couple days.

Ruined Plans...

Well Andy and I were planning to get Sam married off early, but unfortunately they fixed this law and ruined our plans! Of course I am just kidding, I mean I would like to keep him at home one day a week! They rest of the week I was hoping his "wife" could deal with him! Can you tell the terrible twos are wearing on me?!

Toddlers Can No Longer Marry

What the World Eats

I thought that this was very interesting... check it out!

What the World Eats

Hoppy Easter!

This Easter was pretty quiet. But this was the first year that Sam was really excited about the Easter bunny coming and leaving candy! He found two eggs by his bedroom door when he woke up and I think at first that he thought that was all the Easter bunny left. Then I suggested we go look for his basket. He looked under beds and in closets and finally found it in the shower. And so the bathroom floor is where he went through everything! Jacob woke up not much longer after Sam and found his pretty quickly in Ben's clothes basket. Ben of course had no idea of what was going on, but he did really like one of the new toys that was in his basket. Andy had to work, but the rest of us went to church in the morning. Jacob visited with his other grand-parents and Sam, Ben and I went to visit with my grand-parents. Hope everyone had a nice Easter! More pictures here!

You Have Been Selected!

Andy received a letter in the mail today that he has been waiting a few months for now. It is a letter from Oakland Community College stating that he has been selected for admission for the Associate Degree Nursing Program, that starts this Fall. Over the past year he has been working on his pre-requisites and applied for the program in December. Over 700 students applied with only 250 open spaces. Andy has acquired a straight 4.0 since going back to school and has been working very hard with all his classes. His determination, commitment, long hours and hard work paid off with being accepted on the first try! His plan is to graduate with an associates degree in nursing in the Spring of 2010 and begin his new career. (And probably go onto more schooling too... he really is determined to go far with his career!)

CONGRATS ANDY - I am so proud of you!!!

New Camera

I got a new camera today!!! I have waiting some time for a new one and finaaly found one that seemed easy enough to use as a day to day camera (and one that Andy could handle!), but that also had some realy nice features for the photo shoots I like to do of the kids. so, soon I should have some even more realy nice pictures to share!!!

Canon Poweshot S5 IS

Lily's 2nd Birthday!

Today we celebrated Lily's 2nd birthday. She had a Strawberry Shortcake party (funny, I think I had one of those about 30 years ago!). Lily and Sam had a ton of fun chasing each other with balloons. We had pizza for lunch and a delicious ice cream cake. Lily got a ton of clothes as presents and of course some toys too! Hope you had an excellent birthday Lily! There are more pictures here.

Can I Help?

After dinner I was cleaning up the kitchen and Ben was in his highchair having a bottle. He was almost done with his bottle when it started to fall out of the strategically propped up place I had it in. Sam picked it right up and asked, "can I help and feed Benny?" Sam has been quite the little helper with Ben lately and I love watching him take care of his little brother. Sam stood next to his highchair and helped Ben finish his bottle. I was really impressed, because it took a few minutes for Ben to finish it (which in toddler time is hours!). Thank you Sammy for being my big helper!

Two Sleeping Beauties

Sam has been taking great naps at daycare everyday during the week, but at home on the weekends he rarely takes one. He just doesn't want to lay down with me. Although I know he wants one because he carries his blanket all over the house and is quieter than normal. Today he was helping me straighten up the house and it most of did him over, because he fell asleep right on the floor in the doorway to the bathroom. Ben went down for a nap shortly after that. And for the first time ever both boys were sleeping! I of course went into overdrive and got done as much as I could before either of them woke-up!

Congrats Becky!

Today, my sister Becky graduated with her Masters degree (an MBA specializing in Marketing) from Walsh College. I am very proud of her and her accomplishments. CONGRATS BECKY!!! Here are some pictures.

Had to Take Some Pictures

Sam and Ben had some cute matching plaid shirts on and they both happen to be in a good mood at the same time... so I thought I would try and snap some pictures. I think that I got some cute ones.

(more off to the side in misc pictures)

Happy New Year (with a dose of SNOW)!

Happy New Year!!! We had a pretty low key (okay VERY low key) New Year's Eve. Jacob spent the night and Grandpa and Grandma's and brought in the new year with his cousins Kelsey and Lucy. Andy and I were asleep well before midnight (as were Sam and Ben). With a newborn you try to get as much sleep as you can, even on New Year's Eve! The morning of the new year brought lots of snow, about 14 inches of it! It's been awhile since we have had that much snow at one time. Sam had a great time helping Daddy shovel too! Here are some pictures of all the snow.