Dada, you're the best!

There are many reasons why Lachlan and Torin love their Father.
And as it is Father's Day, I would like to honor him by sharing with you some of their reasons:



He hides in forts with us.



He pushes really fast!



He helps us 'climb' trees.

He gives us sweet kisses (which sometimes startles us)

He multitasks



If we are in his way, he just jumps over us instead of asking us to move

He is resourceful in weight lifting.

He snuggles up real cozy.

He plays with us!

He catches us when we fall from the sky.

 

He gives us reason to trust in him



Wait, let's get that from another angle---Yep!  He sure let's us trust in him!

But the main reason we LOVE our Dada:



He's our Dada!!!!  (Taken Father's Day 2011)

Thank you, Luke for all that you do for our boys.  They are so lucky to have you as their Father.  I pray our Heavenly Father will guide you as you continue with this special role.

Happy Father's Day Dada, Grampa, PopPops and all the fathers!
We love you!


Love ya, mean it!
Be here now.

I will Still

To my Darling:

I'll love you, till the mountains fall

And crush us all.

I will, I will.

I'll love you, till the moon floats away.

Everyday.

I will, I will.

And I am amazed, overjoyed.

And I'll fill the air with my voice.

Cause you are mine,

That's something that time

Can not kill.

And I will still.

I'll love you.  Every day I live

I will give to you

I will.

And I am amazed, overjoyed.

And I'll fill the air with my voice.

Cause you are mine,

That's something that time

Can not kill.

And I will still.

 

I loved you, when you held my hand

So understand

I will, I will still.

I'll love you, on the night you leave

Can't you see

I will still love you.

And I am amazed, overjoyed.

And I'll fill the air with my voice.

Cause you are mine,

That's something that time

Can not kill.

And I will still.

                                                           ~Jake Rowan

Happy Anniversary, my Love.  Thank you for four wonderful years.   I truly look forward to many more years to come.  I will still.

Love ya, mean it

Be here now.

Put another Shrimp on the Bah-bie!

After fearing we may end up with extra seasoning of black paint on our burgers from the top of our grill, we decided to look around for another one.  And we found it. (choir singing 'Ahhhhhh' in beautiful harmony)

A Silver Smoke n' Grill Brinkman 2000.  (The name may or may not have been exaggerated)
Since it has a smoker attached to it, I have been experience a lot with different meats and ways of cooking.  Way more than I have ever done.  Luke was normally the griller, but since we got this baby, things have changed...

I smoked meat

Grilled meat

Cooked some sides

And even tried my hand at some ribs



Lachlan tried his hand at ribs too, but didn't want to get his hands all messy...

All in all, I think it has been a big hit!  Especially since we don't have to do a 'black paint check' on our burgers.  But don't ask me, let's see how the folks at home like the new grill:



Emi's a fan!



Lachlan's a fan!



Torin...well, he likes to play with his toys...

So what's missing?  The shrimp!  I guess we'll get there eventually.  So come on over, bring the shrimp and we'll grill it up!

Love ya, mean it
Be here now.

Ready. Set. Crawl!

Auntie Tess, this is for you!

June 6th, 2011 Let it be known Torin is mobile.  (at least across the living room floor)

Love ya, mean it
Be here now

Boat ride on a Birthday

Grampa turned another year older, another turned wiser, so went to celebrate.  Since it was as lovely evening, we decided to take their canoe to the Hepp launch (my Aunt Jane and Uncle Jim's house) down the street and take Lachlan on his first canoe ride.  I thought he was going to be a bit frightened of being so close to the water, but he quite enjoyed it.  I know Grampa being in the great outdoors with his best buddies: James and Lachlan.  We love you, Grampa!

Here we go walking down the street!...with a canoe

Luke did a great job portaging the canoe

Happy Birthday Aunt Jane!

Best buds!

After the loverly canoe ride, we stayed and chatted a bit and played in the sand

The birthday boy was obsessed with the ducks.  There were 9 of them at one point.  Darn snapping turtles!

We had an impromptu Torin photo shoot in his uncle's sweatshirt

God bless Autie Rara in 'Afica' and Auntie Tess in 'Erup' Amen.

What a ham!

Words can not describe this picture.

Checking out the glow-in-the-dark handles of Dad's new skewers

And of course some Quelf!

And more Quelf

Happy (belated) Birthday, Grampa!  Thanks for the boat ride.



Love ya, mean it

Be here now.

Playgrounds and Picnics

Since the weather had finally gotten nicer (about 2 weeks ago-I'm a little behind), as in, it's actually spring now, we decided it was time for a picnic!  So Emily, the boys, and I drove to a nearby park to walk around the little pond/lake and enjoy our lunch in the great outdoors.  The walk was quite eventful for a 2-year old.  He spotted all sorts of flowers, birds, ducks, airplanes, a fountain, and even a lovely butterfly.  After the walk we played on the playground for a bit, ate lunch, played some more, then headed home for some much needed nap time.  Twas a great way to start out the picnic season!

 

Torin's big enough to join in on the playground fun!



All hail the kings and queen of dandelions!

Ha. Check out that shiny nose! 

On a more personal note: today (June 1st) was the last day of school at SACS, which means for the first time since preschool, I have spent a whole year away from school.  Weird.  I was able to go to the 8th grade graduation last night, which was great.  Someone asked me if I thought staying home was the right decision, and without skipping a beat, I said yes.  Though being there last night made me miss being at SACS  A LOT, I still know I am called to be with my boys.  And though I have shed many a tear missing my old students and the life at SACS and the feeling of pride when your students graduate or finish a performance, at home I have been able to grow so much as a mother, a wife, a housekeeper (have a loooong way to go on that one!), and a follower of Christ.  I am so grateful that I have this opportunity to stay home with my darling boys, and look forward to what else I get to learn in the days, weeks, months, years to come.

So take a look at my students that I get to teach now:

                                

Much younger than what I am used to, but they sure make it worth it! 

Love ya, mean it

Be here now.