She's 4!

Miss Liddy-Pie has been so excited for her Birthday party for about 11 1/2 months now. For about 10 of those 11 months she wanted a Sleeping "Booty" party. But then, she changed it up and wanted a little bit of everything, and what she finally decided on was a "Nail Polish Birthday Party." What in the world does one do with that? Especially if there are very limited amount of girls her age? I decided that if we made it as pink as we possibly could then she would be happy. She had 2 friends from church over. And then in an attempt to add more people so she felt satisfied that this was a huge party, we invited some cousins that were super sweet and obliging to come over. Because yes two of these boys are getting to the age of pre-teen and they came to a four-year old's party. We were able to bribe them with some candy, so hopefully that helped. We played all of Lydia's favorites: duck, duck, goose; musical chairs; did a craft; and they decorated cupcakes. Trevor had a brilliant idea of how to incorporate the nail polish--they got to pin the nail polish on toes. And no party would be complete without a pinata. It was "the best Birthday party ever"--or so I was told!

The Beach

I got to spend a few days on the coast visiting family. All by myself. I had a lot of fun with my mom and my sister, and a few friends, but I sure missed these guys...

This was my welcoming crew at the airport when I flew back in. Don't mind Lydia. She is crying because she wants to go to Hawaii. Don't we all?

Brushin' Brushin'

The kids got to go to the dentist on Thursday. They love their dentist! Seriously, they were excited when they found out it was one of the fun things they got to do this summer. Lydia did struggle with the dentist until 6 months ago. And then it clicked for her and now she loves it. So I was prepared that it would be a few years with Piper until she had a full cleaning too. But after she sat and watched 4 siblings go through it, she crawled up on the chair, and laid back all by herself. I didn't even have to hold her. They scraped her teeth, brushed, put fluoride on and everything. I was so proud of her. She loves being one of the big kids.

Take me out to the ballgame!

Trevor has always wanted to play baseball. This year it worked out that it was possible. We found a league that wouldn't interfere with scouts and school. So now that school is out, we are just getting started with the baseball season. I enjoy the outings with the kids because of sports.
At his first game, Trevor was so excited that he was the first person to cross home plate for the season. His favorite part is stealing 2nd. He totally wins for being the cutest player out there!

I loved this and wish I would have gotten the picture 1 second later. His coach is reaching down to pick him up. Because the grass was so long and it was the first game, Trev was unsure how far he had to run to steal 2nd. So his coach lifted him up above his head. It was just funny to see this kid at first being lifted in the air to get a better view. 

Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day to the best dad ever...

This father's day showed just how great he is.
-He wasn't feeling well because he was having some pretty bad allergies from being among all those trees at scout camp.
-He rescued a chipmunk that got itself tangled up in our garden.
-He still helped with the kids and dinner even though it was father's day (he always does this normally, but he shouldn't have to because it was father's day).
-He took me shopping last night, and spoiled me.
-He took a fussy Piper out of church.
-And he looks hot.
There are many other things that he does on a daily basis, but this was just today. I am so thankful for everything that he does for us. Along with going to school full time, he has been putting in at least 55 hour work weeks at work. But even though he still has so much on his plate right now (and all of it will be temporary), he still finds time to play with the kids, listen to their stories, and come to baseball games. I don't know how he does it all, but I am very grateful.

Scout Camp

Grant had the opportunity to go with Ben on his 11-year old scout encampment. They had fun together as always (this was their 3rd campout just this year). Ben is a natural scouter. He has always been too good at knots. Knives and fire are two of his favorite things. His aim with guns is spot on, and now we know that he has stellar archery skills.

Now if he can remember to wear his scout shirt, he'll have that "Be prepared" thing down pat too. 

Field Day

Trevor and Karmin were so excited for their field days this year. While they were telling Nana and Papa one day what they were going to be doing, I started feeling bad for Ben that he didn't get a field day. So I got the great idea to have our own field day. And so it began, the first Ely School Field Day. We went bowling for said field day. As it turns out, Ben was excited to have a field day, but wasn't excited that we were going bowling. I quickly realized this after the first roll of the ball. So I gave him a quick lesson on bowling, and there was no turning back. This was good and bad. On one side it was bad because I'm competitive, and my son went on to beat me in 2 games. But it was good because it just shows that I rock as a teacher!  (:

He told me that he had never broken 50 in a game before. The first game he got 106 (beating me by 2 points) and 122 the second. He almost got a turkey at one point. He was awesome. After a great game of bowling, we stopped at a local burger place and I introduced him to one of THE yummiest burgers that a person could eat. It was fun to have a date with him. School was great this year. I don't know if I could have survived this year without him. And for a lot of different reasons, Trevor and Karmin will be joining us this next year in homeschooling. And I am so excited!

Date Night!

Once a month, Grant and I take one of our kids on our date with us. It has been an amazing experience. I love seeing their personalities shine through. With Ben we were able to talk to him about school and how he thinks everything is going. He is a good kid with a lot of insight and wisdom. With Trevor we enjoyed watching him eat and eat. And then eat dessert. We had some good conversations about his friends at school. He has such a tender heart, but is so willing to do the right things even though it might mean the loss of friends. The night we took Karmin out was a kick. She had people at the restaurant laughing with her lack of shyness. Then she was in 7th heaven because she got to try on a swimsuit at the actual store. How cool is that? But this girl...

She came with us this month and Grant and I were worn out by the end of the night. She talked nonstop. Then we went to the store because she needed new sheets. And it was like she had never been in a store before. Each item was the coolest thing ever. And I'm not exaggerating much when I say every item. Each and every item was worth screaming how incredible it was from the rooftops. We should have been paid for advertising.

Some happenings...

We've been busy. And I feel that is an understatement. However, I don't know what specifically we have been doing. Surviving? I don't know. We've been doing stuff. And here are some pictures to show some of our busyness....

This just oozes being busy. Doesn't it?

Welcome to the Neighborhood, Little One

Look at our newest neighbor:

Isn't it cute?