1st day of 1st grade.

4.

today you are 4.
{taken 8.7.2010}

I bought some diet coke in glass bottles to celebrate. You were thriled.

I remember when you were born, all the doctors and nurses proclaimed how big you were. You are still the smallest babe I've had,weighing at 8lb. 8oz at birth. Your Daddy and I laiughed because you were so small to us, compared to Maxwell.

We moved to Kentucky when you were just four months. It seems the crazy move we made from moving rubbed off on you as you are a very adventurous child.

{Your first Birthday} You have a tender side, you like to snuggle with either Dad or I when you are worn. You have an award winning smile and big brown eyes to melt anyones heart. You can be such a handful at times but I wouldn't trade all the hard times with you for anything.

{July 2010} You are a sweet boy, and today you are four years old. We cannot wait to see what the Lord has in store for you as you grow and our prayer is that your heart desires and longs for our Savior.

We love you Evan John.

xoxo

Mommy

July 2010.

1980....30 years later.

the cake. Totally rad right? My friend Gina did it. She is like totally awesome.


some rockin' chicks. Gina, Allison, Me, Carrie, Lindsey, Beth.


like totally hot guys. {Kieth, Kevin...OH MY WORD he is ridiculous with that pose}, Anthony, Justin, Paul and Ryan}


Just & I.


the radical kiddos. {Silas, Ruthie, Caleb, Max, Clay, Evan, Aubrey, & Faith}


the totally awesome dudes again.


the radical chicks again.


group photo op.

Like TOTALLY!

random monday.

homework & gas. 7.15.2010, originally uploaded by olives on a monday.

2010 ESPYS: Arthur Ashe Award - Ed Thomas

this is an AMAZING story Just & I watched on the ESPYS. {warning: the tears will flow}

8 years

Met in 1997.
Starting dating 1998.
Engaged and married in 2002.
still madly in love in 2010.

I love that every morning you kiss me goodbye, because most mornings I'm still sawing logs. But on the days when I do wake, I still get butterflies.



I love you Just.
Happy Anniversary.
xoxo

last weekend.

This past weekend, we took a little weekend trip to Cincinnati. We went to 4 places in 2 days. It was madness, but a blast.
The best of the madness however,by far, was the last minute decision we made to attend the 2010 MONSTER TRUCK JAM Saturday night.

I left my nice CANON at home so all I had was my little sony point and shoot, but it got the job done, for some good memories.





Liam made this face A LOT during the show.

A great family memory, not to be forgotten anytime soon :)

a few things.

a pic my dad took

back

boys @ Gov. Dodge State Park. WI, originally uploaded by olives on a monday.

we were gone for a week, visiting family and friends. the boys were spoiled rotten by grandparents. Max is going to miss all the fancy french cereal {aka. lucky charms} from the grandparents :)

signs of summer....sprinklers!

I can't thank him enough.

Can you tell which is mine? He's the fine looking one, the one standing there, lookin' all hot, phone to his ear.

He works really, REALLY hard for us. Putting in 50+ hours a week, I know I don't tell him enough how much I apprecaite the job he does. I do.

I think he rocks.

I love how people are drawn to him. Every time we have been at some work event together I can't even tell you how many people approach me and tell me how awesome he is, how funny, how hard working...and I could go on.

Able to laugh at himself {because I tease him A LOT} he is genuine, caring, and the best mate I could ask for.

The boys so look up to him, and want to do whatever he does. What an amazing gift from God to have him as my husband and Father to our three boys!

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY to all the great Dad's out there!

{ALSO...a shout out to MY Dad the DR. who is the best Dad a girl could ask for. Giving, caring, and wise I'm so thankful for him. LOVE you Dad!}

nerd alert.

My brother Alec has released an android app.

Meter Maid 1.0 has been released on the Android Market for Android phones versions 1.5 and up. Keep track of all your parking meters, parking ramps and set waypoint markers on a map with this highly customizable parking app. A car locator is included.

check it out HERE...and search for 'meter maid' in the market.

the middle and youngest boys

Some days Evan can be such a sweet older brother, other days he can shove a toy soldier up your nose and give you a MASSIVE bloody nose. poor Liam.

"This year, or this month, or, more likely, this very day, we have failed to practise ourselves the kind of behaviour we expect from other people."

C.S. Lewis--The Case for Christianity

water wednesday.

water is good.
tasty.
has many uses.

There are quite a few clean water charities out there. One of my favs:
charity:water

"Almost a billion people on the planet don’t have access to clean drinking water. Unsafe water and a lack of basic sanitation cause 80% of all disease and kill more people than all forms of violence, including war. "-{taken from charitywater.org}

Anyway, turning 30 this year has gotten me thinking. About water? Well, yes water, but a lot of things.

I've mentioned before that while staying at home with our boys isn't something I would trade for any job, that feeling of "I don't DO anything" creeps in now and again.

I can try and fulfill my need to "do"something "be" somebody, but that is living for this life, which is temporary. Instead I am increasingly seeing my need to live better for Christ. Show his love, kindness, live my life for him.

Be as excited to read his word as I am to go on a family vacation.

Be as willing to love as Christ loved me, with ALL my faults.

Be always willing to serve no matter how uncomfortable it can make me feel.

To change.

Change is good.

Back to water though. That little rant kind of came out of nowhere, but it's been on my mind and heart.

Simply this: water Wednesdays. Not sure what this will all entail, but the idea is {sort of} there.

It mostly came from an afternoon at Fresh Market and the many different kinds of water they had. While we quit buying bottled water a couple of years ago, I gotta give props to some of these companies for the designs they have come out with to sell you bottled water. It is a bit ridiculous when you think about it.

If you drink bottled water, and want to quit, I have two simple solutions.

1. buy refillable jugs and go to your local grocery store to refill weekly.

2. buy a Brita filter and filter your own tap water at home. The filters last a long time, and work really great.

3. Buy a NICE reusable water bottle.

two I really love:

Sigg

Nalgene













30 is going to be good.
More soon.

A$

our Kindergarden Graduate.

The kids sang 5 songs {I video taped it, but we aren't allowed to post it on the Internet} and they were so sweet. A good majority of the Moms in the room had a few tears to shed.




the Graduate.


We also got to have lunch with Max, and we let the Evan and Max get the school lunch...you would have thought we took Evan to Disneyland. It was a sweet day, and we are so thankful for a wonderful school, and Maxwell's great teacher. On to 1st grade!

It's that time of year again....

Time for annual the St. Ann's fair in our hood. Which means, crowded streets and late nights for us for the weekend. Our neighborhood is normally so quiet it is fun to have this wild weekend in June every year.