Wedding Festivities!!!

This past weekend Eric and I travelled up to Michigan to celebrate Nick and Kim's wedding (while Lucas stayed with Grandma in OH). We had a blast hanging out with our TU friends and being involved in Kim's wedding. It was a ton of fun and one of the most relaxed weddings I've ever been to. Here are quite a few pictures...mostly group shots... of our weekend.

(Above) The TU girls... We missed you Sara and Becca!!

The next three are rehearsal dinner pics...

Saying good-bye... :( Oh, and there's a belly shot for you people who've been asking. :) :)

Daddy and Me...

Happy Father's Day, Daddy! You're the greatest Dad EVER!!

Teaching Lucas the art of dunking for the 1st time...

Just thought I'd sneak this one in... Mr. Tough guy, all right. :)

A new ride...

Check out our new (used) baby-mobile... it fits the 3 of us, plus Little Miss Bland, quite comfortably. We're very thankful for our new wheels (yet for some of us, it was a bit bittersweet to see the truck go).

...it's a Ford Freestyle. (Some of you were asking...)

Look, Mom!!!

I put my clothes on all by myself!!

Lucas actually has been dressing himself lately (and picking out his own clothes) and usually it works out much better than today's incident. I laughed about this for a very long time.

Our Tiny Dancer...

You're gonna love this!!! :) Sorry it's so dark...

No, I have no idea who's obnoxious laugh that is at the end of the video...

Missouri Trip...

The 3 of us just got back from our trip out to Missouri last night. It was really fun spending time with friends and family out there...many we only see twice a year. The best part was being able to watch Lucas interact and get to know his cousins even more. (I was going to insert "crazy" cousins, but many would describe Lucas as crazy too...so that wouldn't be fair now would it??!) The kids all played so well together- even in the rain... which never fazed them. Here were some highlights--

• constant entertainment (and cheap) provided by the kids...7 kids, 6 years and under makes for some GREAT memories


• tea party provided by Alicia- yummy food and equally yummy tea!! (Alicia, I made those scones tonight...hope they turn out like yours!)


• good conversation (of course, once the kids all went to bed- which was sometimes close to 11:00)


• watching Lucas dance at the wedding reception of some friends of the family (video will come later- you WON'T want to miss it!!!!!!!)
  

Nali, to the rescue- with her umbrella.

The kids found a bunch of worms and rolley-polleys under the flower pot... they LOVED it!)

Erin

Lucas pitching to Ashley in the back yard

Watching a race car revving up across the street... I bet they sat there watching it for 20 minutes.

Let the summer begin...

Summer has officially begun at our house. I think we're all looking forward to a little slower pace around here. Yesterday Lucas and I spent the morning at the library picking out books/CD's for both of us and a little time at Barnes and Noble playing with Thomas the Train and reading more books. In the evening we went to Westfield's BB game. This is hopefully just a sneak preview of the fun things going on around here this summer. Enjoy the pics from the last few days!! (FYI, we're headed to Missouri on Thursday. You can look forward to some very exciting action shots of the whole clan when we return.)

Lucas has, yet another reason to love going to G and G's house... his new BFF- the gator.

Field Day '09

Field day was rockin' as usual this year. Although I didn't personally participate as much as I usually do (considering my circumstances), I did get in on the tug-of-war a bit...and of course, cheered on the team all day long. Here's a few pics of my kiddos. Again, I've been blessed with another FABULOUS group of 2nd graders that I love dearly. I could take (almost) all of them home with me.

Mr. Crack Up...

I decided to take a break from working on report cards to share this rather funny story that happened last night.

I just finished giving Lucas his bath. We were in his room drying off and I was putting lotion on his little legs.

Mom: All set, Lucas! Now roll over on your tummy so Mommy can put lotion on your back. (He proceeds to roll over, and immediately starts LICKING the carpet!)
Mom: WHAT ARE YOU DOING???
Lucas: I'm cleaning the floor, Mommy!

Just like that. As if, duh, I should have known. Who doens't lick their carpet?

Teamwork!!

We've had a few days of dry weather finally so the three of us set out to do some more planting. I love documenting all this because it's fun to see the flowers at the end of the summer to see how much they've grown!! And of course, it's fun to have pictures showing all the hard work that went into the whole process. Here are some doozies of the boys helping me.

The "Mommy" thing...

Nothing has brought me quite as much joy in life as being a mom and a wife. Of course, my boys make it easy on me. It comes with its struggles and frustrations, but even then, I'm thankful for the opportunity to play those roles. I LOVE being a mommy... and this cute little kid makes every stinky diaper and every "NO, MINE!" worth it. I'm definitely learning as I go, but it's such an exciting adventure... wouldn't trade it for a thing.

Mother's Day Wishes...

There's a beautiful story behind this box of Mac and Cheese. It all started this past Mother's Day. Dinner time rolled around and I looked at Eric and said, "I want Mac and Cheese and hot dogs for dinner." It was a sunny day so Eric turned on the grill for the dogs and I went to grab the M and C from the pantry. Darkness soon rushed in as I realized...we were OUT of Mac and Cheese. HOW DOES THAT happen??!! That's the one staple we ALWAYS have?!! I decided, since it was my day and all, I was going to get my favorite dinner. So I hopped in the car, drove to Ziggy's gas station, purchased this beautiful (BUT pricey!!!!) box, was laughed at by the gas station attendant (who looked at me and said..."craving Mac and Cheese, hah??")... and went on my way. It was a wonderful dinner and well worth the $2.19. I'd do it all over again if I had to. The next day, I did purchase 5 boxes from Kroger for just about the same price. hee..hee...

Garden prep...

Eric and I truly love this time of year because it means we get to start our garden back up again. Each year we perfect it just a little more... and we both admit we're far from perfect gardeners, but we're getting there! :) We had some great help today planting the first seeds. Lucas helped plant beans, peas, kholrabi, radishes, and lettuce today. Next week, we'll finish the rest of the garden.

Indianapolis Zoo

I had yesterday off for a flex day so Eric also took the day off. The 3 of us headed to the Indy Zoo (first time for Lucas!) and we had a blast. We couldn't have asked for better weather. Lucas enjoyed seeing all the animals, especially the aquarium animals!!! Our favorite moment of the day was when we were able to view the seals from underwater. Lucas stood right up next to the glass and when one came swimming past he'd SQUEAL and laugh with excitement. Here are some pics we caught from the day. Lucas got to feed a giraffe!!! (See below in the blue backpack.)

We all were able to pet some sharks!! Guess who came away quite wet??? (below)