The weather has been so beautiful the last few days and we have spent the majority of it outside..the kids LOVE it! HEre we drew a "road" in the driveway and they spent about an hour driving around and around...(the little girl is from across the street.) Enjoying icy-pops on a hot afternoon is a summertime favorite around here!:)

Boys and their bubbles..it was so funny watching them try to blow..they either blow WAY too soft, or WAY to hard..

opposites in every way..

" I can't do it, mom!" This was what I heard OVER AND OVER:) I love his pouty face..it's the best.

Mitchell figured out how to blow just right after a while and he was very pleased with himself.

I showed Sam what a pill-bug was and after being assured it would NOT bite her, she picked it up and named it Cinderella, then proceeded to "build" it a home( a.k.a. a circle of rocks so it couldn't get away) and yelled at it frequently when it tried to climb out...." NO! Cinderella, stay in your home!!!"

Quite proud of her new "pet".

" I will call her Cinderella, and she will be my very own."



MY washer has decided it would not like to spin my clothes anymore and since it won't spin ,the clothes are much to heavy with water to put them into the dryer. So here is my makeshift, ghetto clothes line. I ring out as much water as I can by hand and let them hang until they are almost dry in the sun then bring them in and run them through the dryer to finish it off.

The process is long and annoying, but, i am SURE i am saving energy.(we ARE buying a new set though, because I don't live in the Philippines and I LIKE my daily comforts here in the US of A.):)
I mention the Philippines because my sister is there and she is washing all their clothes by hand ALL the time. I am sure her hands are red and raw after doing a few loads and the time I have spent ringing out my clothes has made me think and pray for her often. I miss you Crys.

AND NOW, for your viewing pleasure.........

MAX, in all his TOOTHLESS glory....

He got his tooth pulled today and did really good. He cried and was upset for about 1/2 hour and then he was fine. He was crying.." I want my tooth back in my mouth!" :) Poor little guy. It was pretty funny.:) sO he will have pictures like the above for the next 3-4 years until his new tooth comes down...I think he looks adorable.:)

Oh my. It's been a while hasn't it? Well, here are a few photo's from the last month.... The band that I get the privilage of hearing "live" EVERYDAY!:)

Max.is.a.stud.

FINALLY warm enough to play outside..(yes, those are the boys snow boots..they make great boots for wet ,soggy grass..:)

Then it got EVEN warmer and we brought out the sprinkler!:) Look at those ribs!:) Skinny little boys who eat as much as their momma= daddy's motabolism! YEAH!:)

adorable. i love them so much.

This is what we frequently see from the front seat of the van.First he says..."MOM?! Turn it up!!(sometimes with a please on the end..were working on it!:) Then he TOTALLY rocks out!!!! And plays anything he can like a guitar. This day is was a paddle ball paddle.:)

Cassie gets into the fun..playin' her AIR piano!:)

While I was in Ohio visiting my sis(no camera...obviously:) Tyson took all the kids to a carnival at the OCC( Grace college) they had a blast! Sam loves cotton candy!

And so does Aeva.:) Look at the sheer delight on her face?!:)

Cute boys with their snow cones.

Had to snap a shot the other day of Aeva in her cute nighty..she looks more like a toddler everyday and keeps surprising me with words I didn''t know she knew!

So, to catch up on us..

We have been so busy it feels like. EVERY day there is something. I had a blast in Ohio for 2 days just hanging out with my sis and bro-in-law. I love them.:)

I think we have finally come to the place where we are going to quit cleaning the church.

We have tried really hard to pay down a TON of debt and after some circumstances that happened this week with Cassie, I KNOW I need to just be mommy. Between working out and cleaning, I am being gone most nights and my time with Cassie is already so limited with school that I rarely get to spend time with her...I just really feel God saying it's time to quit and trust that he will take care of us. It will be somewhat tight budget wise for the reast of this year, but when I look at the big picture..what is more important?? Being able to focus on raising my kids right or having a buffer to work with for our finances? I will take the first, please. I am also struggling with how I can fit in my excersize without cutting into our family time..it's so hard, but I will admit, it hasn't been balanced very well and I feel my family has paid for it. I think I need to scale back some..which means my eating will have to scale back too!:) But hey..that will help with the grocery bill, right?:) Tyson is plugging right along with school and has completed 2 classes so far. He's in his second block of classes and has been enjoying it.

Well, there is a little update on my life.....hope you enjoyed it.:)