Our Beautiful Crazy Children

Well, after a few computer slow downs, and me not being on top of things again, here is a new post.  I know, I'm biased, but I think they are adorable.  Here is the miracle behind the first picture.  It was a Sunday morning, and Elizabeth had a new dress on (thanks Nana & Papa), so naturally I wanted a picture.  (Amazingly enough we were actually running a little ahead of schedule.)  So I took a few of each of the kids by themselves, then I said, "Okay let's take one with all of you."  You are never going to believe what happened next.  They all stood in a line, smiled, and looked at me!!!  All at the same time.
   Now, normally in a situation like this, I would drop the camera, someone would sneeze, look away, poke someone next to them, roll their eyes back in their head, make a goofy face, or something else would happen.  However, today was a day like none other.  I pushed the button and the picture took.  (I even got it loaded onto the computer without a problem.)  It happened so quickly and smoothly, I almost pinched myself.  So, since things went so well, I let them take a silly picture, which explains the other photo :)

Indianapolis Zoo

Last week we took a trip down to Indy to go to the Zoo. We were able to go with my parents, sister, and brother-in-law. We've been attempting to go all together for about a year and a half, so it was nice to be able to finally to do it. It was a great time together as a family. Afterwords we went back and had pizza at my Mom & Dad's. We all had a great time!

The kids had a great time checking out all of the animals.

The Meerkats were the favorite of the day.

Papa & Elizabeth checking out the bears.

Stephanie & I were really excited about the desert exhibit.
Just like when we were kids.

Thanks Mom and Dad for the great day!
You can see the excitement in their faces.

Stephanie & Wesley at the dolphin show.

Our pumpkin pizza after a great trip to the zoo.
(It looked like a pumpkin, not made from pumpkin.)

Our Baby is 2

I am a week overdue on this post, but I wanted to wait until we had her party this weekend. Elizabeth turned 2 on the 15th. It's hard to believe she has been with us for over 2 years now. The time seems to have flown by. It has been so much fun to see her beautiful personality come out. She loves people (once she gets to know them), and is always ready for an adventure. She absolutely adores her older brothers and has such a sweet personality. We are so thankful for her and can't wait to see what God has in store for her life. Elizabeth you are such a blessing and a joy to have around! We love you very much!

Apple Festival

The Apple Festival was in Kendallville last weekend. That means time for Apple Bowling (thanks Stephanie for the wonderful idea.) It is such a fun weekend, and a really easy way to serve in our community. Plus the food is awesome! :)The weather didn't start out great on Saturday, but got better as the weekend went on. The kids had fun on Saturday and would have come back on Sunday, but that was when our family began the week of sickness :) Everyone seems to be better now, yeah!

Elizabeth & Mommy having a great time!

Wesley Apple Bowling.Ethan not wanting his picture taken :)Jeff working on Saturday before he was really sick :(Dennis & I in front of the Apple Bowling booth.

Some of our great helpers from the weekend.
There were more, I just don't have their pictures for some reason.

Reading Time & Some Fun Pictures

Books are a big deal in our house. Everyone loves to read, and we are really thankful for that. Here are just a few reading pictures.

Here are a few fun pictures of the kids. Elizabeth loves to pick out her clothes & shoes. She also loves to put her dresses on, so below is a picture of her at church.

A few weeks ago we went one of Dustin's (Jeff's nephew) football games. The kids all had a great time yelling "Dusty" from the stands. Afterwords he even stopped so they could have their picture taken with him. Of course Elizabeth wouldn't go anywhere near him, but there are a few cute ones of the boys.

Daddy reading to Elizabeth & Ethan.

Wesley reading to Ethan.Elizabeth at church.

Wesley & Dustin after a football game.

Ethan & Dustin after a game.

A Few Fun Pictures

Here are a few fun pictures from around our house recently. No rhyme or reason, just random.

Enjoying the lake!Elizabeth cuddling up with Daddy. :)

Dad & Ethan driving the pontoon.

Wesley being goofy.

Wesley is 5

Our little Wesley turned 5 on Sunday. We are so blessed that God has given us the privilege of being his parents. He is such a blessing. Wesley truly loves everyone he meets from the moment he meets them. It is so amazing to see the young man that God is shaping him to be. Here are a few pictures of Wesley from the last 5 years. There are so many to share, but here are just a few of the highlights!

Okay, so they aren't all looking at the camera, at least they are all in the same picture and no one is crying :) They just all really wanted to eat the cake!

Indiana State Fair

Here are some pictures from the Indiana State Fair this year. We hadn't been for a few years, so we were really excited to go this year. We went in the morning with my sister and dad. Then we came back after nap time with my mom and sister. The kids had lots of fun seeing all of the animals and eating junk food. Well, so did we :) I'm trying to make up for my lack of posting with lots of pictures this time!

Family Vacation Pictures

Here are a few of our pictures from vacation. These are our attempts at getting a family picture. I guess they aren't too bad. We had a great time in New Jersey! It was fun to spend some time as a family just doing fun things together. I forgot how much I love the beach, and now realize that I love it even more with the kids. We had so much fun together playing in the sand and the waves.

Of course Ethan is crying :)