Fun in Seattle

We just returned from our trip to Seattle. We really had a lot of fun visiting Grandma. Unfortunately, we were having so much fun we didn't take very many pictures of the fun we had. Isaac really loved being with his Great Grandma. He was willing to stay there while the rest of the family left. All three of the kids did a great job in the car on the way there and on the way back. The kids loved exploring around the house and playing with Great Grandma, Aunt Ruth, Uncle David and my cousins Daniel and Luke. Isaac has discovered a love of ping pong and golf. He also loved playing cards. The girls loved to play with water on the deck and they loved to get into EVERYTHING! Mom and Dad loved having an unexpected date night. We really enjoyed our trip and we are so thankful that we were made so welcome in Seattle.

Here is a picture of Grandma, the girls and me. The girls were drying off after soaking themselves on the deck.

Audrey and Hannah are playing in a bucket of water they found. They would have done this for hours if we would have allowed them and we weren't worried about the cold.

Hannah loved drinking the water. (we don't let ourselves think about what is in the water.) Audrey loved watering the plants.

Audrey is standing in the bucket of water. This bucket made a great pool. Our kids just loved being at Grandma, Aunt Ruth, and Uncle David's house.

Favorite pictures from the summer

This has been a busy summer and I have been terrible about posting pictures to this blog. We had a lot of fun having so much of our family come to visit. Here are a few of my favorite pictures we took this summer.

Isaac was able to fly this remote control airplane with the help of this pilot and co-pilot. He really loved being able to move the controller.

One of the men at the miniature airplane show let Isaac borrow his aviator hat for this photo.

Isaac drives a helicopter at the county fair.

Audrey, Isaac, and Hannah goof around on the couch.

Anna, Hannah, and Audrey all coordinate!

Beth, Isaac, and Leah are all ready to go to the library.

Audrey, Isaac, and Hannah are ready to swim.

Audrey and Isaac at the condo.

Isaac is three!

We are so excited to celebrate Isaac's third birthday.  He is getting to be such a big boy.  He has been doing wonderfully with being potty trained.  He also had a fun birthday party with his friend Jackson.  Isaac requested a race car cake.  I was able to find some instructions on-line that I was able to modify so that I felt I could handle it on my own.  The most important thing is that Isaac loved it!

Here is Audrey enjoying some of the party food.

Hannah had a lot of fun at the party.

Isaac wanted to wear his new helmet from Grandma Pookie and Papa Buzz while he ate his birthday dinner.

Here is Isaac posing with the race car cake after he blew out the candles.

Isaac really loves his new bicycle.  He is still learning how to peddle, but it shouldn't take long for him to master that.

Hannah is walking!

Hannah is a full fledged walker now.  We are so proud of her.  This was taken last weekend with the whole family in town.  She is even better now.  Also, Greg tilted the camera so you get to see her walking sideways.  She normally only walks on the floor, but you can imagine she is walking on the wall.  Audrey is still waiting to take her first steps.  It is wonderful to see how our girls each enjoy learning at their own pace.

1000 Gifts 1-5

I discovered a new blog that I have really enjoyed at www.aholyexperience.com.  At that blog Ann asks her readers to become a part of a gratitude community.  She challenges us to come up with 1000 things we are thankful to God for.  I am going to try to write down 1000 of the gifts God has given me.  I don't know how long it will take me, but I believe the practice of being thankful will be a wonderful exercise for me.  Here is what I am thankful for today.

1.  I am so thankful for the legacy I have from my own family and the family I gained through Greg.  So much faith, generosity, loyalty, and love have flowed down to me, my husband and our children.  I am overwhelmed at how blessed I have been through birth and marriage.

2.  I am grateful for the gift of breath and life.  Today we walked and jogged in order to give to people who have lost the ability to easily breathe and many have lost their lives to lung cancer.  Too often I have forgotten that my health and life are gifts of grace from God.

3.  I love the belly laughs of my children.  They may be the happiest sounds I have ever heard.

4.  I love days when we can open up our windows and enjoy the breezes of cool Colorado spring/summer afternoons.  It always makes me happy to listen to our neighborhood waking up from our winter hibernation.

5.  I am so thankful for weekends spent outdoors and enjoying family time together.  I always enjoy our time together, but it seems more special when we are doing something out of the house and breaking up our usual routine.

Stay tuned for the continuation of 1000 gifts.

New Fire Station

We took the kids to the opening of the new fire station this afternoon.  All of the kids enjoyed playing on the different equipment.  We ate lunch there and we even saw a few friends who had also decided to check out the festivities.

Here is the whole family with the life flight helicopter.  Hannah is the one standing up inside the helicopter.  Audrey and Isaac are sitting.

Audrey really loved driving a fire truck.

Isaac stands on top of the fire truck.  Those steps were steep.

Isaac got to put out a little fire on his own.

Our very first 5K race

Our friend Troy asked us to be on his team for the 5K race to raise money for Lung Cancer research.  We really enjoyed our time doing it.  We walked most of it, but jogged about 1/3 of the race.  We did find that it is harder to jog pushing strollers than doing it solo.  It was a great way to start a weekend. 

Isaac and Greg celebrate that we finished the race.

Riding in the stroller really wore the girls out.

Troy and his daughter Madison are ready for the race.  Troy's team was more than 200 people.

This is Hannah eating her breakfast as we get ready for the race to begin.

Isaac was really excited about wearing numbers for the race.