Getting digits already

 



I found this in Aidan's room, after the last week of preschool. It had apparently been in his pocket, and then he placed it on his bookshelf.

It's so Aidan.


Earlier that week he also got invited to another little girl's party. She was in his class the previous year, and they hadn't seen each other in a whole year but still talked about each other quite often. Her mom called me because she wanted to surprise Faith by having Aidan come to her party.

He's a ladies man, alright.

For the sake of all cuteness...

3 boys on the same team...

Aidan's Art Show

We got to visit Aidan's school last week. Instead of Open House, they call it an "Art Show", which is kind of clever. We all oohed and aahed over his work, and visited with his teacher, watched him shine amongst his friends like the socialite he is, and enjoyed cookies and Sprite... which of course one boy spilled.

I love experiences like these... and of course we went out for ice cream afterwards...

Kellan and Ethan's 4th Birthday Party

There were once two little identical twin boys who loved Superheroes. One loved Spiderman. The other thought Iron Man was the coolest. For their Fourth Birthday, they requested a SuperHero party. Luckily for mom and dad, they didn't even mind that it didn't finally happen until over a month after their actual birthday.


Cakes were decorated.













Games were prepared. Costumes were donned.


















And finally the eager guests arrived bearing gifts.


Friends were greeted.













Games were played.
















Candles were blown out.













Cake was eaten.












Gifts were opened.


















So much fun was had!

Illinois Young Authors

So proud of our little man! His imagination never ceases to amaze us, and luckily, he enjoys putting it to good use to create stories. His story, "The Lost Dolphin" was one of 12 winners selected from his school.

He got to go to a special breakfast (donuts and choc. milk, his fave) at Lake Storey Pavillion. They presented all the winners with medals and a certificate. Back at his school in the afternoon, they had an assembly to celebrate all participants, and he was awarded a $10 gift card, which he thought was way cool.

My Littlest Boy in Motion

My Peeps

Easter 2011









Yeah, getting a good picture of all 5 of them all dressed up was not going to happen this day... much to my disappointment.













These are probably my two faves from the day... ironically they are both of Ethan, but I'm really not showing any favoritism here... :)

Gratitude: Some quick things I'm thankful for today.

1. 4 successful little boy dentist visits in one day, with no major tears.
2. A toddler who is such a people person.
3. A wonderful social worker who is investing in us and we invest in adoption.
4. A day off for the hubby who put in an extremely grueling day of work/ministry yesterday (and he did a fantastic job!)
5. Taxes signed and submitted.
6. A tax refund that will help with adoption costs.
7. Sunshine.
8. Getting to work with 2 reading groups in Caleb's classroom this afternoon.
9. Soccer cleats found at the thrift store.
10. Weston making dinner so I could work with Caleb on homework and we could still make it out the door in time for practice.
11. Ethan's preschool teacher stopping by his soccer practice to see him.
12. Playing around on the soccer field as a family for a half hour after practice.
13. Snuggling with my sweet Ethan during the second half of "Tangled."
14. The way Quinn says, "Shoesth"
15. A grocery store trip with no extra little people along.

stirrings in our souls

I've been meaning to do this post for awhile. For those of you who haven't heard, we have just started the process of adopting a little girl from Ethiopia. Adoption has been on our hearts for quite awhile, and the time is finally here. We are thrilled to see what God has in store for us in this journey.

I will be trying to "apotionize" our blog, so that this new part of our incredible journey can be followed, but I will be still trying to keep it as primarily a family blog.

If you want to read more about why we are doing this, click on the adoption tab at the top of the page.

I will also be adding a timeline, some fundraising/support information, and some other flair. :)

Also, if you just want to just read adoption 'stuff', I will be labeling posts related to it so you can just click on that label on the right hand side of the blog.

And here, for your viewing pleasure is a quick link.

This video, actually a promotional tool for a church's adoption conference, gives a little glimpse into our heart for adoption

Just a swingin'

Fun day at the park today. Hello spring!