Ahhhhh summertime

What a fabulous summer it's been so far - once summer actually got here.
Our days have been busy and hectic, full of work and play.
Here are a few highlights with photos below:

-Camping trip with Eric's family up Wise River. It was fun to spend time in the hills with the Schuller family - something we hope to make happen every summer from now on.

-Kaleb's first WEEK away from mom and dad spent with Nammo and Papa in Sheridan. He took swimming lesson, went camping, did lots of swimming in the lake and didn't really seem to miss mom and dad too much, but did miss Jaxon a whole lot.

-Softball tourney and bounce house. Kaleb got to jump in the bounce house before I played softball all day on Saturday. Softball didn't go so well...but it was fun while it lasted. We did however, have a hard time getting Kaleb home from the softball field. He was having the time of his life with the other kids.

-Playdates and popsicles. Need I say more?

-Gunfight at Bannack Days. Kaleb took his six shooter with him and it was a good thing. We watched the gunfight and after it was over he asked me if they were shooting at him.

-Water balloons, sprinkler, water guns....anything water Kaleb loves. We've filled up quite a few water balloons this past July and I'm sure more to come.

UPCOMING EVENTS
There are a few things we have on our list that we want to do before summer is over:

-Sleep out on the trampoline under the stars
-Hit Fairmont and go down the water slide a bunch of times
-Experience the new splash park in Butte
-One more camping trip
-The Madison County Fair

We also have Jaxon's birthday party coming up in 3 weeks. A YEAR? Are you kidding me. How did that happen so quickly?

Kaleb warming up in the sun after a swim in the Ruby Lake

Cute boys in the stroller at Bannack Days. I'm pretty sure if Jaxon could talk he would be saying "I am so getting left out by not getting a snocone."

Could not resist this picture....two amazingly cute bums getting ready for bath time.

Jaxon crashed on the boat and I was wishing I could too!

I love the black and white feature on my camera!


Part of my softball fan-club.




Kaleb going down the big slide at the Bounce House.

C.H.A.N.G.E

There was a lot of change happening in our household this past week. For the first time since I've embarked on motherhood, I went to work outside the home as the new Executive Director for New Hope Pregnancy Clinic and Support Center (more about that in a later post). My re-entry into the workforce started off in a sprint, and though I thought I would be able to stride out a bit on the backstretch, I did not. I kept sprinting; and by Friday, the finish line, I found myself feeling like I'd been run over by a steamroller.

With the added bonus of having a sick husband, a sick 3 year old, and finally a sick 10 month old, it really rounded out the week nicely. NOT! What it did do however, is give me an AMAZING APPRECIATION for all mothers that work OUTSIDE the home. You literally got me through my first week. I just kept telling myself that if so and so can do it, I can do it too!

I'm glad to have my first week under my belt and hopefully the sickness mostly behind us. The only one to not get sick....so far....is yours truly. Maybe I'm more of a superwoman than I give myself credit for. Okay, now I've probably jinxed myself!



A few photos from the past couple weeks since I've been too preoccupied to blog regularly.


mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm carrots are delicious


2 very tired boys


swimming break at the Sheridan pool


did I mention Jaxon is mobile now? Yep, my world just got tougher and his world just got bigger!


finally mom, a sippy I do not have to tip


does this look like "little Eric" or is it just me?


carrot stained face, but sure a good view of those beautiful bottom teeth!

Ahoy!

I got my fix. Of water and boats and sunshine, that is. I've been dying to get out on a lake and if I had my druthers, I would own a speedboat and move somewhere with a big beautiful lake. But since I don't have either of those opportunities, I joined up with my folks for the day and got my fix on their boat at the Ruby Dam.
To my surprise, Kaleb even jumped on the tube and got pulled, with daddy right there for support. He absolutely loved it! Eric and I even jumped on the tube too.

3's a charm

A child's birthday is a joyous event, sprinkled with a dash of bitter-sweetness. The one year birthday was tough for me because my baby was no longer a baby. The two year birthday was a little easier, filled with a feeling of "oh my gosh I hope I can handle the terrible two's." This year the three year birthday was the easiest yet. There is no doubt my baby is growing up but the hint of sadness I felt was overrun with Kaleb's deep involvement with party planning and excitement. Somehow the sadness just kept turning into smiles and feel good moments.

I enjoyed getting feedback this year about what kind of party he wanted, what presents he wanted, the decorations, help with filling the party favors, coloring his invitations.... His involvement was fun and it made his party personalized and special for Kaleb of course - and for me.

But anyone I talk to who has been there, done that, keeps reiterating "enjoy every moment because it goes so fast." I am not taking those words lightly because if everyone is saying it, it must certainly be true. So I did just that. I took it all in. I not only breathed in the aromas of strawberry football cake and cream cheese frosting, but I remembered to inhale the look on Kaleb's face while we stuffed bags full of tootsie rolls and bouncy balls, the excitement in his voice as he saw the decorations hanging up, the anxious way he walked as he waited for guests to arrive. And I remembered to exhale a breath of thankfulness to God for my special son. He has brought countless happy moments to my life in his short three years. My cup runneth over with blessings as a result of his arrival into my life.

Kaleb and cousin Luke in the sandbox
Opening the first present
Pizza party with cousins Hannah, Luke and Maddy
The Western Rifle
Guests: Christina and Liam, Sarah and Landri
Our happy family
All the kids are wrangled for a quick photo: front L to R: Jaxon, Landri, Liam, Hannah and Cohen, Back row L to R: Ian, Kaleb, Maddy and Luke
Papa Tom and Jaxon

Betty Crockers

Betty would have been proud. On Thursday I gathered with 3 other women, members of our Mom's Group, and cooked 20+ meals for our friend who is expecting her third child. It was her idea to prep as many meals as possible in one day for freezing, an excellent idea for any mother-to-be. She had done all the menu planning and shopping ahead of time and even had the chicken cooked for all the meals calling for chicken.

We brought our aprons, knives and our children and we cooked from 9:30 in the morning to 3:00 in the afternoon - with one quick break for lunch.

As we "clucked" around the kitchen we talked and we laughed. It made me think of the days when gatherings like this were common. Though the days of sewing circles, tea socials and cake of the month clubs are all but gone, yesterday was a good reminder of the bond we have as women. How we can gather in friendship and help each other in times of need. And how enriching it was to experience this camaraderie amongst women, amongst friends.

Sarah, Lisa, Gayle and mother-to-be Cheyenne.

Just a few of the kids watching a DVD while we cooked. The others were playing outside.

Sleep Tight

Eric built Kaleb a headboard for his bed. It is beautifully crafted out of old barn wood from a barn he tore down years ago.

TEN is just the beginning

Ten years ago today I married my love. My wedding was so much fun, everything I could have hoped it to be. We had many, many friends and family there to celebrate with us.

When you have a big family (like I do) and a friend list of 100+ (like Eric did) you're pretty much destined to have a very large wedding. I remember talking about what kind of wedding we wanted and we decided we either had to have a very small and quaint wedding, just inviting immediate family, or have a large wedding and invite everyone. We opted for the later, to the dismay of my parents I'm sure. :)

It's hard to believe that Eric and I met the middle of January 2000, got engaged in March and married on June 3rd, 2000. One might ask what we were thinking. I can look back now and say we weren't thinking! HA We did a lot of things very quickly to get ready for the wedding, but even in haste, everything pulled together well and we pulled off a wedding and reception with 200+ guests. Another great blessing was the weather. When you're having a June 3rd wedding in Montana you just never know what to expect. We LUCKED out and had a beautiful warm, sunny day with temps around 75.

I dug into the photo archives to find some wedding pictures (remember, digital cameras were not in use). How fun it was to look back and remember my wedding day. Here's to many more years.....

Before the wedding

Getting my dress on

Eric and his groomsmen hamming it up

The wedding party

Ryan and Rachael

Till death do us part

My reception pants - part of my "3 piece ensemble" I never wore these pants at the reception because yes, I thought I looked fat in them. Oh boy, if I only knew....

Jitterbugging with my baby, FYI he is an awesome dancer! The reception was so much fun.

My grandparents cutting a rug

Gifts and more gifts

The sunset on our wedding day. What a perfect end to a perfect day!