HAPPY 4TH BIRTHDAY FAITH!!!!!

SMILE FAITH YOUR 4!!!!

GG and Aunty Shirley

Winter, Maria (her boyfriends daughter) and Faith

Yummy cake girls???

Faith liked it!

Here is the amazing cake! Faith picked out Tinker Bell this year and the cake was so cute and boy was it delicious!

Faith was practicing smiling before we got her pictures done

Faith and Skippy on Faiths bday morning fun

Faith goes "THIS ISN'T HAPPENING! THIS ISN'T HAPPENING ITS A ZULU PET!" It was so cute! Thank you to everyone for all of the gifts and wonderful time we all had on Faiths birthday. I can't believe that my baby is 4!!!

it is a good day . . .

the last day of school
leisurely getting up and getting to work
listening to matt maher, jj heller, page CXVI, leeland, and tenth avenue north
windows are open
taking the wolverine to the windy city to see my nieces
the garden is blooming

today's psalm is beautiful
Psalm 139:9-10~If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.

Goodbye school -- Hello summer!

Isaac and Adam had a great school year. The end of this year is bittersweet as Isaac is moving from the elementary school over to the junior high. On the last day of school there was an awards ceremony and Isaac was busy getting his name called quite often! He was one of the 6th graders to have earned the Citizenship Award each year and was given a special honor. Adam has gotten it each year too! Isaac also got the Presidential Award for Academic Excellence. I was so proud of both boys!!! Here's Isaac with his best buddy Zack. They're such great kids!

Here is Adam and his amazing teacher Mrs. Behrendt. I couldn't have asked for a more perfect teacher for him -- what a lucky boy! I also loved volunteering in her class -- she and I always had so much fun together! Maybe too much fun! Those are tears in her eyes as she was having such a hard time saying goodbye to all the kids. What a blessing she is!

The last day of school. Every year on the first and last day of school I've taken the boy's picture on our front porch. In the fall we'll be taking the picture in our new home!

And now summer is here! On Saturday I picked up my nieces Cailin & Maren at the airport in Milwaukee. They're here for 2 weeks! Hooray! My brother Mark will fly in on Saturday to spend next week here too. The cousins have been having so much fun together. The weather has been yucky so we've been having indoor fun. We went shopping for fleece fabric and they all worked together making these blankets for each other. What a great keepsake to remember this fun time together.

Happy summer everyone!

Love, Joy

Cool :)

I was able to talk with my dad over the web last night (I had a bit of insomnia from the medicine I am taking (Dad it is your favorite medicine:)).  That was fun since our time zones are off by a 1/2 of a day.  Dad was getting ready to start the day and I should have been fast asleep.  Anyhow, his click on the blog showed up from Japan!!  I think it's pretty cool!!!  (We should see it in the clustermap tomorrow.)

What a Beauty

This was my favorite shot (in sepia tones) from today's garden walk.

I love the simplicity of the cosmo.

Can you see God's fingerprint on this beautiful bloom?

Good Eats

Grilled Chicken, Avocado, Cucumber, and Lettuce from the garden(ftg).

Spicy Tacos with tomatoes, jalapenos, onion, lettuce(ftg), cilantro(ftg), homemade guacamole, cucumber, and salsa.

Corn tortillas prepared on the griddle pan of the new stove!

T-Ball Time

Well, with Spring/Summer comes sports and im so excited that Faith gets a chance to participate in T-Ball this year! Doesn't she look like a pro right before her first practice? Faith and her new friends getting ready to run

Look at that arm! She sure tried so hard and really paid attention to what everyone was saying.

Getting ready to bat and was listening to me telling her how to stand. LOL

Look at that hit!!! (Can you tell im a proud mom! he he)

Running out on the field to get some grounders. I am couldn't believe how great she did. She ran after the ball to get it when someone hit it and even used her glove on the ground to get it, many times, i even had to tell her to let someone else try and get it. Oh what an exciting summer it will be!!

Camping at VanRiper

Faith posing by a tree at our campsite

The view from our campsite

The beach

My little fish! She just ran right into the water like she new what she was doing! Looks like the breast stroke to me! LOL

Our campsite with my cutie pies!!!! We got a screened in tent on Friday before we left, since there was a chance of rain everyday we were suppost to be there. Luckly it only rained on Friday when we were setting up.

Faith had her own clothes line, and she had a blast hanging things up!!

Faith, Joe and I were playing war on Friday since it was raining and she caught on so fast! She liked to sit by Joe it was so cute!

I had a wonderful time camping!

Another quiet moment doing puzzles when the rain was falling. It was such a reminder of Grandpa like he was there with us. I really enjoyed listening to the rain at night it was so soothing and put us all to sleep. It was a great weekend to spend with Faith and Joe and we all loved every min. of it! We can't wait to do it again and are excited for July's Family Camping!!!!

Be Still My Beating Heart

As many of you know, my favorite color still is pink. I never seemed to grow out of loving it.
Last fall I bought this Foxglove Digitalis to add to my perennial garden. The previous one was demolished by a severe winter. Much to my surprise and delight the new plant is a GORGEOUS shade of pink.
Aren't the inner polka dots just so fun and unexpected?

The Foxglove Digitalis has a very unique name. The Foxglove is believed to have come "Folk's Glove" which means "Fairy's Glove". There are a lot of variations on the story from there including lore about fairies living in the blooms and foxes wearing the blooms to sneakily raid chicken coops. The Digitalis part of the name means "fingers" and the blooms do look like fingers or at least invite little kids to put their fingers inside to feel the polka dots. And for the moniker of this post, the leaves of the plant are used for a common heart medication called Digoxin. The medicine is used to treat arrhythmias, congestive heart failure, and other heart ailments.

Alaina's 2nd Birthday Party

Just a quick note:
We are having Alaina's birthday party on June 19th at our new house. I know that the trip is too long for most of you for the day, but I wanted to make sure everyone knew they were invited and always welcome! If you would like more details, let me know.
Emily Ann

Oak Apple Run

Cara and I before the race - 7:15 am!

Myself, Cara, and Natalie after the race!

My trusty old shoes.  They are ready for retirement. 

I have worn holes right through the soles on both feet.

Cara and I sporting our Oak Apple Run T-Shirts.  I'm posting this picture even though you can see my belly.  I'm still losing weight but this year I confidently ordered a Large instead of an XL ;) 

The Oak Apple Run is a certified course.  Once again, I think they were crazy for making the last quarter of a mile an uphill run to the finish!

Jenna (my weight lifting trainer from LA Fitness).  She ran the 2 mile race to encourage her friend who works the front desk!  She is a great trainer - always cheerful, knowledgeable, and always attentive.  We always have a great time!

This year's bib!

Here is a link to my official time

(just a few seconds different than my heart rate monitor!)

10K in 1:10:47

It's Heating Up In Here

Gas Stove/Convection Oven Installed Today

Wishy Washy

We swapped out last week's dishwasher (right), with its huge and bulky handle that blocked my drawer with the sleeker and even cooler - ultra high functioning dishwasher shown on the left. It even has "smart dispense" which allows me to dump the whole bottle of cascade into the door of the dishwasher instead of storing it under the sink. The dishwasher then dispenses the soap as needed. Inside it has several nice features such as the china clips and flaps for all of the silverware baskets.

(double click to enlarge)

Big News!

After lots of thought and dreaming we began considering moving to a bigger home earlier this spring. We knew we wanted more space for the boys and also room for family and friends visiting. Our home on Nagle Ave has been wonderful but after 11 years we feel we've outgrown it. We've decided it's time to move on and we found a wonderful home! We're moving! This past week we made an offer on a beautiful ranch style home and our offer was accepted. Here's just a hint of what it's like ... the pictures were taken by a realtor and aren't the greatest so you'll have to come and visit us and see for yourself!

It's located on a quiet cul de sac with lots of trees. It has a fenced in backyard and seems so quiet and peaceful.

Here's the kitchen! I can't wait to have the boys sitting at the counter while I whip up something great for them!

I don't have any other decent photos that do the home justice. We are all so excited and looking forward to our move. I told the kids it would be lots of hard work and they said they think it seems like an adventure. They have their rooms picked out and have big plans for all the space in the basement. It's huge!!!

That's the big news! We hope to have lots of visitors. We'll be closing sometime mid-July.

Love to all!

Joy