In Memory Of My Mom

The thirteenth of October is a day I will never forget. It's hard to believe that my mom passed away exactly three years ago. I'm sitting here trying to write something and remembering everything like it happened yesterday. I remember gathering around her and telling her goodbye. That one word that I wasn't ready to say yet. It's amazing how life goes on. So much has happened since then; my little brother got married, my dad re-married and four new grandchildren have been born. I have felt her along the way and know that even though we can't see her, she is still apart of our lives. There are times that I wish I could talk to her and tell her what I am feeling, but today I will have to settle with my thoughts in this message. I miss you and love you so much. I will never forget you. http://carol5205.blogspot.com/

Happy Birthday to ME!

So today didn't start out as well as I would have liked considering it is my birthday. My boys decided to go for an early morning wake-up call. I was really hoping that they would decide to sleep in for once and since Nate is out of town (which is another reason I was feeling a little gloom), I had to get up with them. After McCoy's soccer game this morning, Karin, my sister-in-law offered to watch the boys for a couple of hours while I went shopping. This was one of the best gifts that I could have been given (Thanks Karin). Then this evening, I met my brother, Lance, and his wife, Stacy, for dinner at the Cheese Cake Factory. We had a good time and afterwards they came back to my house and we let the kids play together while we watched a movie. I feel grateful to them that they were able to take time out of their day to spend it with me and make today a special day. I miss Nate and will be glad when he returns on Monday. Amazingly, today ended up being a pretty good day.

Happy Birthday Landon!

My September 11th baby has turned 2. I can't believe how big my baby is getting. Landon went around singing to him self "haty birday to you" all day long. It was so cute. Here are some things to know about Landon other than the fact that he is sometimes painfully shy and very stubburn...

Favorites

Food: - spaghetti, popsicles, juice and candy
Toys: little motorcycle - “Agogo”
People: Daddy, Mommy, Papa Jewkes and Brother- "Drudger"
Places: Anywhere outside
Things to do: Ride his bike, play with his toys and play in the water.

He loves to help out- He says, “I hep, I hep”. And for some out of this world reason, he likes to pull my dish towels off onto the floor. I think he might be a little bit of a tease like his daddy.

He also likes to push buttons a little too much (TV, remote, garage door opener, computer keyboard, cell phone, etc.)

Landon is very special to our family and I can't imagine our life without him. I love you Landon!

Harvest Time

Fall is one of my favorite seasons. I love when the leaves start to change on the trees and the temperature cools down a little. I also love when it's time to harvest all the fruits and vegtables that grew throughout the summer. This last weekend, Kamey and Nancy came up to my house to do some canning. I can't believe all that we accomplished. We made my mom's famous hot sauce, salsa, spaghetti sauce, raspberry jam and bottled peaches. I think we were a little crazy now that I think about it. My kitchen has now just finally been put back in order.

Salsa

Hot Sauce

Spaghetti Sauce

Raspberry Jam w/ Huckleberries

Peaches

First day of School

I can't believe McCoy is old enough to start preschool. The best thing is that we only have to walk down the street five houses to get there. He really likes his teacher, Miss Kathryn, who is the most organized person I have ever seen. To be honest, I'm really looking forward to spending some one-on-one time with Landon two days a week while McCoy is gone.

Labor Day Camping Trip

For Labor Day weekend we went camping with my family. For the first two days we had great weather, but then it turned cold and started to rain and hail. I wish I had taken a picture when it was storming because the ground was covered in white ice. Luckily, our tent held up okay and our stuff didn't get too wet. But, there was mud everywhere and it was really hard to keep the kids clean. Although, they didn't seem to mind and looked like they were having the time of their life. We decided to leave a day early to dry out and went back to my dad's house. That night, we stayed up playing games until the wee hours of the night. Nate and I taught Nancy, Michael, Tasha and Jim how to play Nights and Cities of Catan (our favorite game). Michael won the first time and Nancy won the second - probably beginners luck. Overall, we had a great time and were glad to spend time with family.

We went fishing at Wrigley's lake and the only person who caught a fish was Amelia who had never been fishing before - beginners luck again, I guess. My little boys had a good time sticking their poles in the water and catching moss. No wonder Nate didn't catch anything :)

Not meant to be

Last week I went in for a doctor's appointment and found out that the baby was no longer alive. According to the ultra sound, the baby's heart had stopped beating about a week before. This was quite a suprise because I had no signs or symptoms that something was wrong. So at 11 weeks along I had a decision to make; to wait and miscarry the baby naturally or have a D&C procedure done. I chose the later. I guess some things are just not meant to be. I do have a lot to be grateful for, though; a wonderful husband who I love dearly and two cute little boys that I absolutely adore. Life has lots of ups and downs that makes us just a little crazy sometimes, but in the end there are always reasons for the way things happen and I just need to keep reminding myself that there is a much bigger picture that we can't always see.

Oh Baby!

I guess it's time to announce that we are going to have another baby. Nate and I are excited. We're due March 12th. It will be nice to have a spring baby instead of a winter one like my last two. I'm hoping that number 3 is a girl, but Nate said he would love another boy. McCoy told me he wants two more brothers so we'll see who gets their wish.

Breckenridge, CO

Earlier this month, we went to Breckenridge, CO with my family. Most everyone was there and we had a great time. Nancy's family has visited several times, but this was the first for my side. My dad brought his fourwheelers and we rode them about everyday and found some great trails. We also went sight seeing down town, river rafting down the Arkansas, swimming at the local recreation center and played Settlers of Catan until the wee hours of the morning. It was sad to leave and I look forward to going again in a couple of years.

The view from our condo.

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A little river flows right through the town of Breckenridge. I thought it would be a great place to take some pictures, but my boys didn't really want to hold still.

We visited the Breckenridge City Fire Department.

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River Rafting was so much fun. The river was very high and had class 3 rapids going down. Nate, my dad, Nancy, Amelia and I were all in a raft together. We were glad that we had a great guide to help us. This was one of my favorite things we did.

Happy 4th of July

The 4th of July is one of my favorite holidays. We usually go camping, but this year we spent the whole week leading up to the 4th in Breckenridge, CO (post to follow) so we were home during the celebrations. Landon and McCoy loved watching the fire trucks, police motorcycles and horses in the parade. They also had a blast watching our own fireworks and then the big firework display just a couple of blocks from our house. Having children has made every holiday so much more exciting. Seeing their faces light up at everything is great. I can't wait until next year!