Tuesday, August 20, 2013

Beginning the "lasts"...


This was Tymber on the way home from church yesterday.

Sound asleep.

Nothing would wake her.

Even as her siblings poured out of the hot car making dibs on the microwave for a quick lunch to fill their bellies...she slept.

Life has been a lot like this lately.

Living every minute to the fullest and then not being able to keep my eyes open.

It was an amazing summer full of memories that will keep, moments I never want to forget and the beginning of the "last" times we will be all together under one roof.

I don't want to miss a thing, and I don't want to forget either, so I am going to try my best to put it all here.  The good and the bad.  The setbacks and the triumphs.

I have played all summer and not gotten the pics up and the feelings documented, so here is to balance.

Living this amazing life with a family I am blessed to lead and love, and taking the time to get it all down, so they will never forget this time.

18 years ago it was a hot August, John and I were playing in a co-ed softball game and we were anticipating becoming parents.

I would never have imagined then, under the lights at the Castle Rock ballfields, that years later I would be planning and living that boy's last year in our home.

I would never have been able to imagine the prayers that would be poured out on my knees for that boy in my belly.  The prayers that he would be able to see what he could become.  The prayers that he would not become distracted with things that would take him away, even for a minute, from the path he was born to pursue.

I am so blessed to be a mother to this crew of 7.  I can do this.  We tell the kids all the time that "we do hard things."  But this may be the hardest...letting go.

Off to embrace the present.

Friday, August 16, 2013

School Survival Kits 2013



SCHOOL SURVIVAL KITS

Ellie and I saw this idea here, and knew we had to recreate our own.

It was so fun, that we just may do it every year!

First we headed to Walmart and got the following:

Emergen-C
Nail file
Tide To Go
BreathSavers
Proper Zero packets
Luna bars
Colgate Wisps (to go toothbrush/toothpaste)
Jergens lotion
Halls Vitamin C drops
Small notebooks (they are .88 for four)
Carmex lip balm
Excedrin (Migraine or Extra Strength)
Purell hand sanitizer
Crystal Light raspberry green tea packets
Tums
Avery labels (to write their name and message inside)
(We also picked up Lint rollers and small kleenex, but couldn't make them fit in the final product)

You also need supply boxes (we already had some from clearance years ago)
We opened everything up and sorted it on the counter



 Then we troubleshooted until we got it all to fit.

Then we followed the same set up for all of them.

 These are two pictures of the finished product.

Lot of flash late at night...sorry!

 Then Ellie wrote all the notes to the teachers, and each of their names on the front.
 Here is the setup that we found that worked best by layers.

Layer #1 above

Layer #2 above

 Layer #3 above
Finished product all labeled up and closed. 

This one was for Ellie's Aunt Julie who is a teacher too!

Her's said, "I love you!"

 We ended up making SIX. One for Ellie's teacher, her three office ladies, her principal, and her aunt! (We have another for her Aunt Melissa, who is a Dean, when we see her soon)
These are great!  Have fun with it!!
You can choose whatever you want!
Be creative!
Happy 2013-2014 School Year to everyone!!








Saturday, August 10, 2013

Magical Monday Nights...

Instagram photo of the day~Annie LOVING her family night on the boat!
I love that she looks free and happy!
First up was Ellie!  She is a little athlete, that one!
She is strong, beautiful and kinds funny when she wakeboards.
The many, many faces of Ellie...
Tongue out...


Eyes closed...
Then Easton was up!
This kid is seriously good!
I am not just saying that because he can do most of the tricks everyone else can years older than him, I am saying that because this kid can do everything from switching hands to an entire back flip on this thing!














Annie with a half-smile this time!










Ellie looking wind-blown and happy too!


















Brooke and Annie getting "over-exposed" by the sun!






Brooke getting ready for her turn.

I love watching them in the water, waiting for the thumbs-up, and watching them conquer whatever they set their mind to.

Love that!



Look at this face!

Seriously cute, little Tymber!

She just sits on the boat, happy as a clam, watching and cheering for all her sisters, and brothers.

Seriously LOVE her!

Easton on the serious side!

Tymber sporting a little "duck face!"

Check out those eyes! 

One green, one brown today!





Absolute FAVORITE pic of the night!

Tymber and Easton sharing one of those moments.

The kind of moment that you don't want to forget anytime soon, if not ever.

They sat like this for a few minutes.

Just staring.

My heart literally took a picture.


Brooke going crazy showing off!






Saying goodnight!

Magical Monday strikes again!