A few more pics from yesterday. . .

Terran, River, and Ben.

Sara didn't like getting her shoes wet.

The sleeping twins.

Sara got a little hungry on the way home. She's such a nut!

Jessa's Birthday!

What better way to spend a birthday, than a day at the beach?
Jessa's condos have a slice of private beach, complete with grass, picnic table, and a shady tree.
It was a beautiful day!

Me and the girls. Jessa provided all the water toys! Cool aunt!

Kayte spent most the day on this duck. She was absolutely fearless!

Will was definitely getting the hang of it. I love lifejackets! He swam the whole time!

Ben was not a fan of the sun. My usually mellow baby was happiest asleep :)

Happy Birthday Jess!

Our own little piece of Americana. . .

Car-top luggage carriers. As American as apple pie and stationwagons.
It isn't enough that we drive this enormous gas-guzzler, but with four children, all in car seats, there is just no place for luggage. I just hope there is enough room for all our gear up there :)

Joe and I picked this up last night from Spokane on our way home from a day at the beach with the kids. It was 100 degrees outside, we were all tuckered out from playing in the waters for hours and no naps. But we were there and we had to get this done. Joe and I had done a little research on the Internet so we could be prepared to get in, get out, and get on our way.
:)
When we got there and looked at what we had picked out online, we realized it was probably too small for four teenagers and ourselves, which is what we will have soon enough, you know. So we wandered around with our four children hanging off all sides of the cart, two without shoes, trying to do the math of cubic feet divided by price, factor in wind resistance and gas prices, that sort of thing.
So we finally found what we wanted and they were offering a special, where they would throw in a $50 gift card with purchase. So we rushed around the store, looking to spend a quick 50 bucks and decided to get new toys for the kids. Pile those in the cart and after some confusion and miscommunication, we finally got the salesmen to get our carrier out for us. Turns out we didn't get the right brand of carrier for the gift card, but we could hardly put everything back, as the kids were genuinely excited about their new basketballs.
So, several hundred dollars later, two trips to the bathroom and an attempted feeding for Ben, and we were finally on the road.

But in the end, it all doesn't matter cause a car-top carrier = vacation! I can't wait!

My Little Rain Cloud

I am no "green thumb"! My husband would heartily agree. Nevertheless, he has put two little pots of flowers under my charge. Somehow, one is thriving and the other refuses to conjure up even one little bloom.
(In the spirit of full disclosure, I have to admit that I forget to water them regularly. . .)
So my little superhero in his pink cape volunteered to help me out. He stood on the bench so as to seem more like the natural rain.
I think the flowers were pleased to see a new face and certainly appreciate a little moisture!
I just think he's cute!

Cousins!

Ok, I got some feedback that maybe Ben didn't look so much like Will in those baby photos. Here he is with his cousins, River and Terran. You have to admit these guys look a bit like family, right?

I just hope I came home with the right baby! :)
(He does have a couple extra pounds than the boys, but otherwise. . .)

His Close-Up

I had to zoom in on this pic, cause his face is priceless!

The Dinosaur Park

The biggest slide in Pullman. Before. . . .

. . .After. Somehow Will managed to land head first. You can't tell from the picture, but the bark even made it in between his teeth.

Kayte is more ladylike about her landing.

Will is teaching Jack a little something about dinosaurs. (Thus the title "Dinosaur Park".)

I ventured out with the four children today. We went to the library in Pullman so excited to see the library lady! It has been about 7 or 8 months since we've been. Turns out it was the Mayor's day to read books (not quite as exciting :( ). And I counted about 100 kids there for this big day. But the kids didn't seem to mind.
Then we headed to the park to play and have a little picnic. Everyone got quite pooped out and took good naps!
Good summer day!

Miss Sara

Sara has started to refer to herself in the third person and is particularly fond of possessive adjectives. It is always "Grandma's car" or "Sara's milk". She will sit and watch me fold laundry and tell me which article of clothing belongs to who. She is surprisingly good at it.

But my favorite thing is when I'm pulling off her shirt and if it gets a little stuck coming over her head she hollers out in sheer panic, "Where's Sara? Where's SARA!!!" and tries frantically to pull herself back through. . .

Ben and Me.

Isn't he precious?
Did I mention that I love the baby stage? He's so sweet, and although he has passed my favorite newborn phase, I love that he recognizes me now and stares at me from across the room.
It is nice to be admired. :)
Getting close to 12 weeks old, and nearly 15 pounds!

Vote For Joe!

Ok, here's my official plug! Joe is up for a three-year term on the Logos School Board, which would start immediately. We are so excited at the chance to be involved in the school in this way and would really appreciate your votes!
Ballots are due by June 30th, so if you haven't voted yet, please remember to do it this week!
Thanks so much!!!

Preschool Room Project

I wanted to get a "before" picture, but this is actually about 8 hours into it.

Jeff Handel, Phil McMurray, and Matt Whitling are finishing up the window installation. (Not pictured: Dave Casebolt and Josh Wright were there most the day too. That's good family! :)

Saturday was a busy day! We were so enthused about the preschool move from afternoon to morning, Joe was eager to volunteer to help out! They ended up putting him in charge of it and he rounded up a crew of very capable volunteers. By the end of the day, new windows were cut out and installed, a wall had been moved, and the carpet ripped out. There is about one more day's worth of work and the classroom should be good to go!

I can just see my little Will hobbling up the steps with a his little blue backpack!

My Boys

Ben is such a pudge! He really lights up whenever Will comes by for a chat. The girls interest him, but he is especially entertained by his big brother. Remember that picture of Will next to Ben all stretched out on a chair? Will looked like such a giant then. Not so much anymore. . .

Trying to get a giggle out of him. That is hard work, and very few have succeeded so far.

Talented Guy!

Will learned how to snap. He can actually snap off anything, his foot, his arm, there is the two-handed snap, and my favorite,
"the noggin' snap". Demonstrated here:

Kitchen Helpers

Will was such a gentleman and ran and got stools for everyone so they could all help out.


I had one of those days this morning. You know, the kind of day that just starts out a bit bumpy and you aren't really prepared for it, so you don't hold up as well as you would have liked. I truly believe all moms know what I'm talking about :)
Anyway after some early naps, everyone (especially me) felt a bit rejuvenated, so I tried to save the day from total disaster by having a little fun in the kitchen. So now we are waiting for the "krispies" to cool off and catching a little cartoons.

Nothing like playing in the kitchen and a little sugar reward to turn a day around!

Guess who?

I saw that picture of Will on my slideshow today and I couldn't believe how much it resembled Ben! So I had to find a similar shot of Ben and see if anyone else agrees that these two have a lot in common.
It is funny, because I don't think my girls look anything alike and they never have.

She's Home!

Isn't this a sweet sight?

Joe drove the jeep home on Monday night. It still needs a lot of work on the outside, but the inside is sparkling new, without a speck of dust. The night we brought her home, Joe spent much of the evening just standing out there admiring her. So I put the kids to bed, brought out some shrimp scampi and wine, and we sat in the jeep and had dinner right there in the driveway.

It will probably be another year before she is in prime condition on the outside. But for now she can drive, and that's all we need!

Joe's Day!

Off to Spring Valley. You can't tell from this picture, but the place was packed!
Favorite Dad's Day hangout, I guess!


Everyone caught a fish!


Even Sara! . . .She wasn't that impressed with the slippery thing.


Will likes to toss them back himself.

Well, we had a crazy busy day! (You can tell by the state of my house, it looks like a bomb went off in here!) I was up at 6:30 to get ready for church. I woke the kids up and we did presents with Joe. The kids made their own drawings and I framed them for his office. They turned out very well! After church, we picked up some Mickey D's and headed for Spring Valley to do the traditional Father's Day fishing. It was pretty successful and there was lots of sun! As soon as we got home everyone crashed-even Ben, which meant I got a quick nap too! Then it was some BBQ at Chef Dave's, and now we are home to our huge mess. What a lovely summer day! Whew!

Happy Father's Day, Grandpas!

Dad and Ben.

Ann and Dave with Jessa's twin boys.

To two of my most faithful readers: Happy Dad's Day!
Here's to many more!!!