Father's Day Weekend!

Father's Day!

We took a few pictures outside before church, and Dave was sure that he and the kids needed to incorporate the armadillo somehow.  (If you've known us for any length of time, you've probably heard that this armadillo has been a major small source of contention in our marriage.)  Isaac was also sure he needed to have his Texas flag in the picture.  :)

After I took this picture, I realized Emma wore this same outfit last Father's Day.  The pants are capris on her now, but comparing these two pictures shows me what a little girl she is now!  

last year--Father's Day 2013
(Emma also had a black eye from a fall!)

 I love this picture Dave and Isaac reading on the couch while I finished making dinner after church.  I think Isaac would be content to read non-stop.  I got home from Bible study the other night at nearly 10pm, and these two were still awake reading Laura Ingalls Wilder! 

Father's Day tradition at our house…ginger beer!  Isaac acted like he liked it, but I think it was only because he knows it's Dave's favorite.  (This is Dave's long-standing favorite all the way back to his Taylor days, where he discovered Vernor's ginger beer.)

My Father's Day gift to Dave was an afternoon to do whatever he'd like….of course, he chose to read.  :)  I baked the whole afternoon, and then we FaceTimed with Papa & Nana!  It is always great to see their faces and hear their voices, even if it's over a screen.  We are so excited that our kids are getting to visit them for a week next month!  

We swam and had dinner at my parent's house that evening.  My cousin, Nate, came too.  Isaac had a blast wrestling and swimming with both Nate and Dave.

My parents bought this new inflatable slide for the pool.  

Isaac and I tried to go down side-by-side….unsuccessful!  :)

I love how Emma is about to sail into my dad's arms while Isaac is hanging on his back.

Dave tried jumping over the entire slide!

a water war!

The water shooter that Nate is shooting over his shoulder was just $1 at the Dollar Tree and has been the BEST water toy this summer!

What's Father's Day without desserts?!?  

I made rum cream pie from A Homemade Life & Snicker Doodle Cupcakes.

(This rum cream pie was the BEST thing I think I've ever made…I already can't wait to make it again.)

My favorite thing was watching my dad savor the last few bites of pie right from the pie plate.  It made all the hours of baking worth it!  

We ended the night by eating popcorn by the pool.  Sometimes, it takes Emma a little while to warm up to people that she doesn't see very often.  But, by the end of the night she was happy to sit in Nate's lap and feed him popcorn.  I think he ended up being fed much more than he wanted to eat. :)

 A few other pictures from Father's Day weekend...

Biking on Friday night!  Our absolute favorite thing about our new house is its proximity to the Arcadia Trail System.  Now that Isaac can ride so well on his own, we have been biking nearly every day.  Dave and I keep saying that Isaac's ability to ride a bike is a total game-changer for our family!  It is so fun to bike together.  Emma sits in the back of the carrier and loves looking for dogs while we ride.  She also turns around and says "hi" to me at least every other minute. :)

And, on Friday night, we celebrated our eleventh wedding anniversary!  Our actual anniversary was the following day, June 14.

My parents kept Isaac and Emma for the evening so that we could go out.  We had a gift card that we used at Bonefish Grille, and then we walked over to Central Market for gelato.  A perfect night!

So thankful for this man God has given me!

This last year has been heartbreaking, challenging, and thrilling. We lost four grandparents. We moved to a new home, & Dave started a new job.   Together, we have experienced God's faithfulness and presence, and we can't wait to see what He has for us in year 12. 

these smiles

We are loving summer!  And, I love these smiles.  I can assure you that we definitely have our moments of tears, not sharing, not getting our way, and arguing at our house, but these smiles more than make up for those times.

One of Isaac's favorite things to do each morning is open Emma's door and wake her up.  Yesterday morning, he opened her door and then straight to find me in my bathroom.  Isaac said, "Mom, you have to come see.  Emma is doing the kindest thing.  She is sitting in her chair reading calmly."  He was so impressed!  (Ha!)  I was able to capture Emma looking Isaac so excitedly as he went into her room.  This is honestly how excited she is to see him every morning.

And, Isaac was all smiles earlier this week when Dave had a rain day!  (So was I!!)  Dave told Isaac that he could go on "workerman errands"with him in the truck.  Isaac raced upstairs to get dressed.  When he came downstairs he said, "Mom, I look like a worker man.  I have a striped shirt and dirty pants on."  

Emma's favorite thing to do at the pool is jump in!  She is getting braver every day.  

I checked on the kids after breakfast one morning, and they were both in Emma's crib.  Emma said, "Mommy, we guggle" (snuggle).

Dave's jobsite is near where the kids have swimming lessons twice a week, and we love visiting him.  Last week, we had Chick-Fil-A for lunch together.

And, this morning we stopped after swimming lesson with donuts and Starbucks.  Yum!  

I think Emma would be content to keep her head on Daddy's shoulder all day long.  

I'd say this very accurately reflects David (always smiling), Isaac (always trying to get a laugh with his "crazy faces"), and Emma (eyes always on her brother).  

Our upstairs air conditioning unit was out for 10 days while we waited for a part to be ordered and then installed, so we all camped out on our first level for 10 loooong nights.  After a few mornings of the kids--particularly Emma--waking up with the sun, we wised up and put Emma in the laundry room.  Of course, Isaac asked right away to have a sleepover with her.  They were both SO excited.  

I posted this picture on Instagram on their first night having a sleepover, and my friend Candace wrote, "Perfectly clean laundry room and both kids laying on their beds - not fussing! Dream home!"  I was tempted to make excuses that my laundry room isn't perfectly clean (after all, you can't see the countertops) and that the only reason the kids are laying perfectly still is that they knew they'd be separated if either moved an inch.  But, in a moment I realized that YES---this is my dream home.  I have a husband that loves me and two children whose smiles make my heart sing.  They are my dream come true.

Four Wheeling!

My cousin, Nate, has 3 four wheelers, and he invited us to go to four wheeling with him today.  To add to the fun, my dad has a three wheeler and an off-road motorcycle.  We went to Red River Motorcycle Trails near Muenster, Texas.  Even though it was HOT today, we had so much fun.  

Isaac also has a Fisher-Price four wheeler that Nate gave Isaac for his second birthday!  We brought it along, and he and Emma both rode it when they weren't on the real four wheelers.

Isaac rode with everyone.  As soon as he got back from a ride, he'd ask someone else to take him on a ride.

Isaac became very attached to the helmet he's wearing in the picture below with Uncle Jon.  

At the end of our day, Nate told Isaac that he needed to take it home and clean it so another of his friends could wear it.  

Isaac asked, "How many friends do you have?"  

Nate joked and said, "Well, I only have one, and it's YOU!"

Isaac didn't miss a beat and said, "Well, then you can let me have this helmet and take it home!"  Haha!!!

Nate gave me a few basic instructions, and then I was off!  I followed Uncle Jon (who had Isaac riding with him) and Nate.  At one point, we came to a steep, narrow hill that climbed and then had a sharp turn.  As Nate was giving me a few pointers on how to climb it, three guys on four wheelers came down the hill.  One guy completely crashed and flipped.  Nate and the other guys helped him get set up to go again, and they came down just to where I was waiting to see if the machine had any damage.  They must have figured out that I was a little worried about climbing the hill, so they all said they'd wait and watch me.  (I assured them they could keep going, but they didn't.)  By this point, Uncle Jon and Isaac had abandoned their four wheeler and were standing on the top of the cliff cheering for me!  I think Isaac was pretty impressed with his mom.  (Worth it!!) 

Do you see this girl's grin?!?  Dave is determined that she will be his roller coaster partner and like all things to do with speed and thrill!  

Whether Emma was riding with Daddy or Uncle Nate, she was grinning!  

"More, more!" she kept on saying.  

Nate testing out his newest four wheeler's capabilities!!

So tired!  Emma wasn't moving by the end of the afternoon. 

Isaac did not want to leave Nate at the end of the afternoon.  As we were walking toward our vehicles to leave, we overheard Isaac telling Nate, "Here's the plan.  You take my carseat out of my dad's truck and put it in your truck.  Then, I can ride home with you and have a sleepover!"  :)

Then & Now: Throwback Thursday

Isaac--2 1/2 years old (April 2012)

Isaac--4 1/2 years old (May 2014)

I bought this little toy lawn mower at a consignment sale for $1, and we gave it to Isaac for Christmas when he was 2 years old.  I think that was the best $1 we have ever spent!  When Isaac was 2 years old, he followed Dave around almost every Saturday when Dave mowed the lawn.  Last summer, when Isaac was 3, he wasn't as interested.  But, since moving to our new house, Isaac once again loves to "help" with lawn work.  When I saw Isaac following Dave around with his mower a few Saturdays ago, I raced to find my camera.  As I snapped pictures, my eyes filled with tears.  Wasn't it just yesterday that Isaac was just two years old?  He's definitely older now, but I love that he still adores being with his dad.  

Emma--4 days old (February 23, 2012)

Emma--27 months old (May 2014)

We pulled our infant carseat out of the attic this spring to let a friend borrow it for a weekend.  It sat in our piano room for a few weeks before we returned it to the attic, and Emma had a blast with it!  She loved sitting in it.  On this particular occasion, she even buckled herself in correctly!  

Again, I was struck by how quickly my children grow and change.  Some days, I feel as if I teach and say the same things over and over.  (Clear your dishes, flush the toilet, don't forget to wipe, don't crawl out of your crib, buckle the top first and then the bottom…)  In reality, the issues I am focusing on today in parenting today will soon pass.  Older moms and grandmas tell me over and over, "You'll blink, and they'll be going to college.  Enjoy today."  I don't want to forget that this time is precious and quick.  I love these two to pieces.