farm girl, really?

You can take the girl off the farm but you can't take the farm out of the girl.

Apparently, I've been living in the city too long.  I really did wear my good work clothes out to the farm for harvest photography today.
But that didn't stop me from hopping on the four-wheeler for some fun.

My daddy was probably not impressed with my work shoes.  Dir-tay!!














My racing partner - Shirley (she doubles as my step-mom when she's not on the four-wheeler.)

Yep, that's what this girl does on the farm!

busy, busy, busy

We've been busy around here.
Busy having fun.
Busy playing hard.
Busy marking things off our summer bucket list.

Each of the kids made it to VBS over the first two weeks of summer.

I'm getting a major bleacher bum.
I love, love, love watching my boy on the baseball diamond.

















More bleacher bum in the gym.  Hannah is honing her basketball skills in a summer league.

Oh yeah, and we've been eating blue sno cones.

stop, in the name of love

This is certainly not a "Welcome to My Room" sign.
It's more like a "Sisters - Keep Out" sign.

Eli is helping with wheat harvest this year.  His favorite Uncle Ray sent this treasure home from the farm with Eli last night.  He's hoping to keep his sweet sisters out of his room.  We'll see how it works.

I'm pretty sure I heard the tune "Stop, in the Name of Love" coming from his room :)

blessings

We've got a new motivator at our house.
Just a few jars and some gumballs.
Amazing what such simple things can do to motivate kids to be kind and helpful.
Be kind.  Be helpful.  Be loving.  Be a blessing. 
Get a gumball.
When your jar is full, choose a reward.
When Hannah's jar is full, she will choose money to put in her savings account.
When Abi's jar is full, she wants to get a feather in her hair.
When Eli's jar is full, he will probably choose either money or a date with mommy and daddy.
It's not a contest.
If you say "it's not fair", you lose a gumball.
Other than "it's not fair", you can't lose a gumball once you earn it.
Easy, peasey, lemon squeezy!

summer bucket list

We want to be intentional with our time this summer.  Inspired by some very creative moms and families, we spent some time making our own 2011 Summer Bucket List...

I had to loosen up quite a bit and let my kids enjoy their creativity in writing the list.  This was a great reminder for me to enjoy the process and quit worrying about the final product.  My kids are excited about their summer plans and are very proud of their list.

I think I'm going to make my own 2011 Summer List :)



happy birthday eli

My one and only son turned 12 this week (June 2nd).
I can't believe it!
I have said this before - his birth turned me upside down AND right side up.
My life has never been the same and I wouldn't trade it for anything.
Eli is my "free spirit, very comfortable in his own skin" kid.
He's smarter than many grown-ups I know.
He's funnier than most comedians.
He's pretty ornery, many times pushing the line to naughty.
And he would give most any Bible scholar a run for his money.
Oh yeah, he's pretty cute too.
I'm pretty proud to be his mama :)

I have always loved this photo of Eli taken on his 4th birthday.  It captures my boy - CUTE, CUTE, CUTE, sweet, ornery, farm boy, Mr. Debonaire.

Eli spent most of his day with his other mother, Gina (thank you, Gina!!).  She is so very, very good to him.  They spent the afternoon on a farm and Eli was heard to say "this is my best birthday ever!"  That makes me happy:)

We had pizza and Twisted Cow for dinner.  Aren't these besties just adorable?!

Happy birthday Eli!  I love you and I love being your mom.

summertime

School's out. 
Memorial Day has come and gone. 
You know what that means!  It's ...

Sunshine, swimsuits and sandals.  Need I say more?
Umpires at lots and lots of games.  Lovin me some baseball!
Miles and miles of walking
Masters - ok, I'm not really ready for the Masters but it's fun to pretend
Eli's birthday - I'm so glad to have a baby with a summer birthday!
Route 44 cherry diet coke, most delicious during happy hour :)
Toe rings + painted toenails + flip flops = happy feet! 
Ice cream & hot fudge - the calories surely don't count if we walk to get it
Many, many simple pleasures
Eating outside