6/24 - Blueberry picking one last time

We took Sam & Jeremy (two of my younger cousins) to pick blueberries and swim at the country club.

6/21 - Ila & Scarlett

We went swimming at the Cowan's and tried to get some pics of Ireland & Scarlett. They were so cute swimming.

6/27 - Ila loves playing her piano

She now has 6 teeth, loves chewing on anything (especially small toys or pieces of things she finds around the house), and she still loves to make her cooing sound, but her newest favorite sounds are growling, squeeling, saying "da-da-da" and smacking her lips. She enjoys playing with all of our musical instruments and lately loves walking behind the alligator walker.

6/23 - Nathan's & Connor's Rainy Day Fort

We've had a good week. Nathan & Connor enjoyed VBS at Trinity this week (they love making things, learning new songs, playing with their friends, and the lessons) while Jackson had his 2nd week of swim lessons. It rained almost every day, so we enjoyed some fun making forts, playing games, baking, etc. while it rained.

6/26 - Video of Jackson swimming

Jackson's swim lessons - he loved it!

Ila loves the mirror already!

Friendship Bread

All three boys have had fun making friendship bread and sharing it with others the past few weeks.

Fun in the rain!

It has rained a ton this week. Our street crested today. Thankfully though, the rain hasn't messed up any plans with VBS, swimming or other things we've enjoyed this week.

Jackson's 1st Swim Lesson - 6/16/08

Jackson is a wild man in the water with no inhibitions. We decided it was about time for swimming lessons, so this is his first lesson. He did really well and by the end of the week, was able to jump in, turn around and swim to the side. He especially loves jumping off the diving board and swimming to the ladder. More pics and possible video to follow next week.

Nathan lost his first tooth!

Nathan and Connor are enjoying Vacation Bible School this week (every morning from 9 a.m. till noon). They are learning about creation and both boys told me the story of the fall on the way home today. Nathan lost his first tooth and couldn't be more excited! Both boys are continuing to play piano and are doing very well learning, as well as composing their own songs. Jackson has been a ham in the water (first session of swim lessons!). I've enjoyed my mornings with Jackson and Ila. Jackson and I get a lot of quality time together during Ila's morning naps. He now calls me "Mom" and Chris "Dad" instead of Mama and Daddy. He also gets kinda bossy at times with me. Thought it is funny, I guess I'll have to nip that pretty soon. He loves watching the garbage trucks. Today when they passed our house on the opposite side of the street, Jackson got really distressed. He kept pointing at our trash saying, “Ga-ga truck, more!” and then as the truck went further down the road, Jackson followed him saying the same thing as he pointed to all our neighbors trash that the silly truck forgot to pick up. Ila continues to be so sweet and prissy. She dramatically throws her head back and cries when she's upset (which is not very often at all...generally when she's tired or Jackson takes something away from her). She holds her left hand out like a princess while she flips the pages of a book with her right hand. She's been cruising furniture and can't wait to walk...aaah!

Father's Day

We went to Houston on Saturday for Jessica High's wedding, so spent the night with the Oliphants. The boys and I agree that they have the best Daddy ever! He LOVES to play with them (and they especially enjoy wrestling with him!) and is so good at teaching them, helping with them, disciplining them and more. The kids enjoyed bringing Chris breakfast in bed, then we went to the Oliphants' church, and had a nice, relaxing afternoon. The kids loved playing with their cousins, especially their newest cousin, Sawyer! He was born only 5 weeks ago and I got to be a part of his birth...it was amazing. A few other pics below show what a good little eater Ila is (even as she's too tired to keep her head up!), Jackson feeding Tex (Rob & Kirsten's dog) ice cream, Jackson crawling like a crab, Kirsten and Sawyer, and various pics of our boys with Sawyer, Mimi and Boppy with our kids, Bryce doing pull-ups (way to go!), and Ila in the sling we tried out of Kirsten's (she loved it b/c in one hold she got to chew on her toes!). Enjoy...

Dinner with the Irelands

A nice evening out with my parents, Lauren and Joshua. We went to Tokyo (hibachi grill) to celebrate mine and my Dad's birthdays. Originally we planned to go to Carrabba's, but Nathan and Connor insisted on Tokyo b/c they have the fire, make volcanoes, and "we always go there for birthdays!" Below are fun pics of Ireland watching the fire, a few posed pics, and some fun pics of the kids eating with chopsticks (which they love to do). Yes, Jackson's pants are falling off in the last picture. They fell down all night (first time I'd put those shorts on him after pulling them down from Nathan and Connor's hand-me-downs.