Back Home

Well, the boys and I spent two weeks in Louisiana while Jas was out of town doing research (we've been back for a couple of weeks, but I haven't had time to blog about it... so here goes). It was a jam-packed visit, but so refreshing to have time with my family.

The first weekend, Mom, Jonah, and I flew to Indianapolis for a wedding. It was a fun time with the gang from back home and the newlyweds were beautiful! My brother was in the wedding, so I got to spend some quality time with my new sister- I've waited years to have a sister, so it's so much fun to me! Brent & Amanda are still in the newlywed phase, too- it's sweet seeing them together.
My sweet Aunt Cheryl and Uncle John met us in Indianapolis to take care of Jonah while we went to the wedding- what a blessing! It was great to catch up with them, too.

Aunt Cheryl spoiled Jonah to books, puzzles, and treats. He's so accustomed to big brother being around, he just loved the focused attention!While we were at the wedding, Noah spent the weekend back in Louisiana with Papa. He worked in the garden, helped pick up sticks around the yard for the burn pile, and to top it all off, Papa took him fishing! Hats off to my dad who remembered to take pictures of the event! Quite a catch, wouldn't you say?That Sunday was Noah's birthday, so we had a celebration with Mima, Papa, and Mrs. Kathi that night. He was so excited to get "Buzz Wightyeaaaah" (aka Buzz Lightyear). "To infininy and a yawn..." (To infinity and beyond!)On Tuesday, we were able to get together with a couple of my friends from high school for a playdate. The boys loved being outside.

(Noah, Drew, Jonah)We actually had four boys 3 and under playing together- and three mommies having adult conversation. It was impressive, I must say.

(Caleb, Drew, Jonah, Noah)Kristina, Drew, and baby Cathryn. What a treat to all be in town at the same time- thanks for making the trip, Kristina!Wendy and Caleb- thanks to you, too, Wendy for coming down while we were in town. I loved it!My youngest brother, Mark, really enjoyed his time with Jonah. We thinks JooJoo is the coolest.Of course, while we were there, we had to feast on some good Cajun crawfish! Noah wouldn't eat them, but he thought they were fun to play with. We had crawfish battles where we'd bang them against each other until one of their claws fell off- that was the loser. Don't worry, they were already dead... no animal cruelty here. Well, unless eating them is cruel- maybe, but they are so yummy!The second weekend, we headed to the lake. Mom and Dad rented a cabin for us on the waterfront and we had so much fun. The boys loved the sun, sand, and water.

(Me, Mark, Mom, & Jonah)

Noah rode on a tube with Mark behind the boat. He loved it and kept asking to go faster. I, however, was so nervous. I was ready for the ride to end... Dad took the rest of us skiing. We were fortunate enough to have a weekend when Brent & Amanda could join us again!

(Me)

(Brent)

(Amanda)(Mark)This is one of my favorite pics- Mark is trying to drop a ski- and it doesn't quite work out. But, it's a great leg shot!
Here we got a shot right before he fell, but it appears successful in the photo!Almost every time he was in the boat, Jonah fell asleep. Papa and Mima didn't seem to mind the extra cuddle time. And I must say, Papa did a great job driving and holding the sleeping pumpkin!The last day, Brent & Amanda got a little tubing time in right before the thunderstorms hit and sent us packing...
I love this picture because Brent & Amanda are both so great with our boys. I think someday I'll be posting a similar pic of them with their own kiddos- and won't that be fun?
Me and my brothers- I love 'em!The night before we left, Mr. Tom & Mrs. Kathi (my second parents) came up to play with the boys. Jonah is absolutely crazy about Mrs. Kathi ("Kaffee"). And Noah loved playing with her, too. She's a pretty fun grandma-to-be!
As for mean Mr. Tom, he snuggled with Jonah a bit, then put him down and stuck one of Duchess's dog toys in Jonah's pants. Duchess hunted Jonah down to retrieve her beloved toy. It was so funny, the picture doesn't do it justice, but the adults had a nice laugh. Poor Jonah didn't know what was happening!
Hands down, the best part of the visit is letting my mom and dad love on the boys.

Thanks Mom and Dad for loving on all three of us for those two weeks. What a treasure chest full of memories. I love our moments together, and I don't forget what a blessing we have. Thank you, God, for the gift of family.

Mother's Day Weekend Camping Trip

Despite the rough start- the flat tire, spending the first night in a hotel, the extra several hours of driving to get another spare, and little man throwing up in the car- we ended up having fun on our camping trip to the Pahsimeroi Valley. We were just about 30 minutes away from our camp spot Friday night, when the flat tire graced us. The boys didn't mind the extra time watching dad work and playing in the sagebrush.
Around 4pm on Saturday, we finally made it to our camping spot. Here's our new 9-man tent. Actually, it fits the four of us quite nicely- room for Little Man's pack-and-play, our queen-size air mattress, and the single mattress for Bugga.

The boys just loved being outside. Little Man pulled this stake out of the ground and was happily tromping around camp with it. In the meantime, Bugga helped Daddy collect wood for the campfire...

Isn't that the cutest pic of the three of them hauling the wood? The gathering trip before this one, Noah actually carried some wood himself- I guess he was getting tired at this point and wanted a ride on dad's shoulders. I don't blame him- I would have, too!

It got down in the 40s on Saturday night, but we slept pretty well. Plenty of blankets for everyone. The boys woke up around 7:30 and Jas graciously took them hiking and let me sleep in...

Here's Noah, the hiker. He loves to go on trails and see all the sights. At one point, they heard a noise and he said, "You hear dit? Wha's dat?" Jas told him it was a squirrel. Noah replied, "A squirl? Let's get outta here!"

I woke up around 9:30 hearing these words outside the tent, "Boys, don't squish him. Be gentle. You squeezed him too hard- now he's pooping. Don't put him in your food!" I thought, "what in the world?" I got up and the boys had found a fuzzy little catepillar crawling around. Of course, they couldn't keep their hands off. On the far left, they're just watching him crawl around. The next pic, Noah is trying to feed the catepillar a berry- saying, "Eat, eat!" Jonah's poking him with a stick. The poor thing actually lived through it all and we finally released him back into the "wild."

Above, part of the hike with dad... did I mention that they love it?
Part of the purpose of our trip was for Jas to get some hydrology work done at four stations there in the Valley. We hung out and played around while he worked. The boys were never bored- far too many rocks and too much dirt for boredom!

Noah told us that his alligator likes to eat rocks. Here he is shoving the appropriate-sized rocks down the gator's mouth into his belly. I wish I had a picture of the hand-full of rocks that I dug out of that poor animal! We tried to get a good Mother's Day picture of me and the boys. Bugga wouldn't hear of it, though. So, Jonah and I got a quick pic- isn't the backdrop gorgeous?

Luckily, daddy's boy would take a picture with him. Here are my boys- all three of them. Thanks for being troopers through a rocky trip! I loved just being with y'all.

Swimming for the fishes!

Thanks to Grandma, our boys are in swimming lessons! It was part of her Christmas gift to them, and also a Valentines gift. We are halfway through our second session and the boys love it! Since they are both so young (and only 15 months apart), they are in the same class- a mommy and me class. Luckily, Ms. Sue (their instructor) is able to help out with N while I hold J. Otherwise, it would just be chaos!

I love seeing those smiles while they are learning to feel comfortable in the water. Sue does a great job making the learning part a lot of fun!

Bumper boats are one of their favorite activities. What boys don't like to slam into each other?
One of the things I like most about these lessons is that the boys are getting accustomed to wearing life jackets during part of the class. This will be especially useful when we spend time at the lake this summer!

Here they are in the "boat"- I keep waiting for one of the kids to puke when we spin it around. That will be the day that I quickly exit the pool and building- hopefully Jas will be there to handle the kids if that happens!
After every lesson, the boys get a gummy fish from Ms. Sue. This is by far their favorite part of the hour! So, yes, I've been bribing N to get him to attempt to blow "nose bubbles." We're making progress, though!

Thank you, Grandma Janice! What a great gift- not just for the fun we have, but also the skills the boys are learning. It's so important that they learn to be safe in the water.