Ben's 5th birthday

Party at Sky High Sports! He said it was the best birthday ever. 

 

More gifts on his actual birthday, including a new bike and skateboard.

This sweet boy used to be my little buddy that would go everywhere with me and hold on to my leg.  Now he's such a big boy that wants nothing to do with running errands with mom. He loves playing sports especially baseball, being physical, and has to be the silliest and funniest at all times. He goes until he drops, loves to be with Daddy in the garage, loves to help load things in the truck and go backpacking with Daddy. He loves to make his sisters laugh, loves our dog Maggie to pieces, loves to explore, he is shy and a crazy man at the same time. He could jump and do flips on our trampoline all day. His favorite thing to do at school is to build block towers with his friends and knock them down. He has a sweet little stutter, an adorable little smile, and a very likable friendly personality that makes him the life of the party. I can't wait to watch him grow up. We are so very blessed to have such a sweet, lovable, perfect 5 year old son. 

Papa came to visit and was so much help, we love it when he's around :)

Coug game

We had no plans to go to the Coug game but spur of the moment decided to drive to Pullman and find tickets outside the stadium. I love going to Pullman, Brad loves watching Cougar football, and the kids love eating lots of treats at the game. And we won! :) 

Best part about Monday

This adorable little face, love her.

Abi started cross country practice (she is in purple). She is fast, hopefully she takes after Aunt Sarah! :) She is always in the front with the boys and the coach has to tell them to slow down. She has two meets one the end of Sept and one in Oct, and if she qualifies one more in Oct.

Monkey Ben

Decorating for fall

Maybe this is true for all 3-children families but is especially true for us!

We had another great lake weekend. I forgot my camera in the trailer Saturday so we didn't have any official fun, since I don't have photo evidence. The kids had a blast swimming and going for jet ski rides and we listened to the coug game on the radio with our feet in the lake and cold beer in hand. By the end of the game we drew a crowd and coug fans were cheering up and down the beach. Boats and paddle boarders stopped to listen and get the score, it was great! Mostly because we won :) There was a wedding down by the water with big white tents Saturday night, very pretty, and we finished sealing up and painting the shed.

Ben's first day of Pre-K at Scribbles

Handsome buddy

Drop off

Cate's one year stats

Cate one years stats (she's perfect!)

Weight 22.2lbs 80% percentile 

Height 30in 73% percentile 

Head cir18.3in 83% percentile

Abi one year stats

Weight 25lbs 96%  percentile

Height 31in 85% percentile

Ben one year stats

 Weight 24lb 14oz 78% percentile

Height 31in 78% percentile

Head cir 18.8in 86% percentile

Bath time with sissy

She's growing up way too fast. She can climb up on the couch into the window sill in about 10 seconds. She climbs on anything and everything, goes up and down stairs, runs, eats big girl food, goes down a slide, loves to jump/run around on the trampoline. She doesn't get into things but she's a very busy girl that seems more like a toddler than a baby everyday. 

Finally is getting some hair

Switching from formula to whole milk

Being cute at the doctor

Back to school 2nd grade

Going to miss my girl and how much she helps me take care of Cate. But she was ready, more than ready, and excited. I wanted to curl her hair and wasn't sure her shoes matched (although they match her backpack) but she wasn't having my opinion so I let her be and she was happy. We had a great summer, now back to school :)

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Couldn't of said it better

Someone needs to create a word that describes what happens inside of a mama’s heart as she’s watching her child walk into a school building. We need a word for the feeling that overtakes her after saying goodbye to her infant who is somehow masquerading as a young ADULT and who is walking away from her into their adolescent life. A word to describe the phenomena that is a mother sitting helplessly in her empty van while her heart silent screams her daily PLEASE PLEASE PLEASES!!! PLEASE be good to her. Please see her strengths and overlook her weaknesses. Please sit by her at lunch. Please smile back when she smiles. Please want to be her partner. Please be gentle. Pleasepleaseplease. PLEASE.

And how as she watches her daughter walk away—toward the unknown of her day and away from the KNOWN of her (SO BRAVE! HOW DID SHE GET SO BRAVE??? IS THIS LEVEL OF INSANE BRAVENESS EVEN WISE????) her head understands that the world is unfolding as it should. Her head KNOWS that all is well. That she is beginning her LIFE and that LIFE in all its bruty is what she came here for. And that she is ready. But her heart will not receive that memo. Her heart wants to run after her and pull her close and say: JUST JOKING HONEY! WE MADE A MISTAKE! THIS IS TOO MUCH! Come home and we will stay together forever and I will make sure that life NEVER HAPPENS TO YOU. Don’t worry. We will snuggle forever. Because I am not ready.

So she just sits in her empty van for a moment—holding up the car line for a split second too long. Her body is temporarily paralyzed, short circuited by the opposing messages from her head and her heart. The mixed messages SWARM her being and all at once she feels pride and fear and terror and excitement and hope and hopelessness and tenderness and ferocity and loss and gain. All these emotions swirl until her heart becomes so swollen that it threatens to escape out of her throat into tears and so she instructs herself to snap out of it. She shakes herself a bit. She breathes deeply and shrugs it all off and she drives away. And on her way home she tries to restore her heart to its original size by thinking of other things. Practical things. Because it’s all too much. Whatever that feeling is—it’s a lot like looking right at the sun. It’s simply too bright to stand for longer than a moment.

Glennon (Momastery)