Friday, June 30, 2017

June love


I always say that June is my favorite month. I'm never ready to see it end. But, we did make some amazing memories in the past thirty days! And now that the days are long and the sun is warm, we are excited to start July :)


Such a fun baby to photograph! I wish I could say that he is ALL smiles ALL the time, but no baby is perfect, right? :)



So easy for him to fall asleep in the Snugli!


One of my go-to breakfasts (or usually breakfast for dinner) pannekoeken. Melt 6 Tablespoons of butter in a 13x9 glass dish in a 425 degree oven. Whisk 6 eggs, 1 cup flour, 1 cup milk, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Pour the mix over the butter in the 13x9 and bake for 25 minutes. I sprinkle it with "snow" aka powdered sugar, and it's one of the only meals my boys get excited about. And it tastes even better with cut-up fruit or real maple syrup.


These rhododendron were begging for a photo-op. ;)


We checked Walmart for WEEKS for Cruz Ramirez and Jackson Storm from Cars 3. This was a red letter day when we finally found them! #boymom #lightningmcqueensbiggestfans


"I woke up this cute."


More cupcake practice.


I thought toddler TOMS were cute, but then MorMor gave August some baby TOMS with yellow sunshines. Yes!


 Miss Ivy turned 8 years-old! This in itself is a complete miracle!


 

August's 5 MONTH photo. He likes to roll back-to-tummy and tummy-to-back, he is reaching and grabbing everything, and he loves to laugh and giggle at his brothers. Such a joy!




This was AWFUL. Ephraim was running around the house following Nolan, and he fell in the hallway. I don't know if he hit his forehead on anything besides the floor, but immediately after I picked him up, he had this huge goose egg on his forehead with a purple line down the middle. Dr. Grandpa said he would be fine, and he was, but it was a scary moment!


His forehead and eyes were so swollen that he looked like a Klingon for two days.

And then the blood from the busted blood vessel drained into his eyes, and he had two very black eyes for two weeks. I'm so glad he looks normal again-- though there is still a bump there a month later!


 The PA state flower-- Mountain Laurel.





Having church al fresco a few weekends ago! Steve is leading worship in the white hat.


Where you can find August and me every night from 9-11.



On June 13th, Steve and I celebrated our 8th anniversary! We were sick that day, so we had to cancel our dinner plans. But we were able to sneak out for a little ice cream at the beach.


1st anniversary: Paper. 2nd anniversary: Cotton. . . 8th anniversary: Ben & Jerry's. Have you tried "Oat of this Swirled"? Steve's favorite.


For Father's Day weekend, we drove out to Indiana to see my Grandpa! August Daniel is named after Great-Grandpa Dan, so it was so so special for the two of them to meet.

Great-Grandpa and the three boys at Taltrees Arboretum's Train Garden.



The whole group-- my mom and Don, my grandpa and his wife Gayle, the five of us, and my mom's two sisters Sally and Lori.


Four generations :)



And our friends Kevin and Julie and their two boys stopped at Taltrees on their way home to Cleveland. It was SO good to catch up with them!


This was our first time to Valpo Velvet Ice Cream.


My cousin Lindsay and her family met up with us here. Tristan and Ephraim are 5 days apart :)


This was honestly the best Father's Day ever!


The next day, we went to the Indiana Dunes. It was GORGEOUS! Lake Michigan is home to me. One of my favorite things was that you could see the tiny Chicago skyline 50 miles away. #augustsfirstbeachvisit #takemeback



Nolan found an enormous piece of driftwood and carried it around with him.


Playing in the sand with Aunt Sally.



After the beach, we ate at Culver's and went to the movies! The boys were THRILLED to see Cars 3, and it did not disappoint. Ephraim was quite scared of the dark theater and loud previews at first, but once he saw Mater and Lightning, all was fine :)


That night we drove halfway home and spent the night in Toledo. This was such a comfortable Holiday Inn!

I love this view in the morning.


Salted caramel chocolate cupcakes--my favorite that I've made so far! The salted caramels on top come from Aldi, and they're absolutely delicious.


The best garden helpers-- watering the zucchini plants with a watering can and a squirt gun. I go to bed every night feeling completely exhausted, but these boys are my entire world. When I stop and think about it, I can't believe I am a mom of three boys, and I thank God that I am able to wake up every day and do this life.

As always, thanks for reading and checking in on us! Have a great weekend and a happy Fourth!!


Thursday, June 29, 2017

Summer beginnings


These are the last photos I took on my trusty iPhone 4. I loved that phone for three years, but lately every time I went to take a photo, the battery would either die, or I would run out of space. So! It's exciting to have something new. And the reason I haven't blogged in a while is that it's taking me some time to figure out how to get the photos on to the computer and organized. My new phone doesn't have a USB cord, so it's all via Google Drive. 

The above picture is August's 4 MONTH photo. We will soon be taking his 6 MONTH photo. Say it isn't so!


My friend Brittany took some beautiful photos of our family. Her blog is Lawrence and Grace, and the more of our session is here.



This is the first tomato plant that I've grown indoors. It's doing really well outside! I'll have to snap some photos of my 2017 garden soon!


:) :) :)


In May, Nolan finished his year of Cubbies at AWANA! This program was the BEST, and he had a blast! It makes my heart happy that he memorized so many important Bible verses and made some friends.


Proud of his ribbon award!


Steve went to the grocery store for milk and brought me home some beautiful pink tulips!


My friend Ruth sent the boys these adorable shirts! I really want to frame this one!


New motherhood mantra: Extend grace, and laugh.


I don't have much time to spend in the kitchen, and dinners have been mediocre, but I have been improving my cupcake game. #priorities


Friday night dinners are our fave!


Mother's Day with one of the best!


Somehow August always makes it into our bed at 6 or 7, and this is my view :)


When the pink dogwood trees were blooming in May, I was swooning!

I'll get more photos up tonight or tomorrow!

xo.

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