Th circus was in town...

for Carter's 6th party we had a circus theme... it was a lot of fun and planned at the very last minute. I was up the night before scrambling for ideas and working on printouts until 1a.m! But on Sunday it all pulled together and looked awesome!

Carter swinging at the pinata...

treat bags {filled with animal crackers}

popcorn table

Cake time

balloon animals

photo booth{with clown noses}

presents{and lots of 'em!}

8.4.04 {that is the date my baby boy was born}

6 years ago I was blessed with a second child, my second boy!! He was tiny 6lbs 13.5oz & 19" tall! Today he is still tiny and still has those beautiful blue eyes that have captured my heart!

He may be my second child but he is my favorite Carter!

He is a whiner .. he likes to tag a long with his big brother{even if Owen don't want him to}.. he is a big 1st grader.. he can ride his bike with out training wheels.. he can read{even though he says he can't}... he has an amazing raspy voice... he is missing 2 teeth {bottom center}... he likes to fight with his sister.... he is a people pleaser! He is baby boy ...

Happy 6th Birthday Carter Isaiah!

Job interview

For the 1st time in about 7 years I applied for a job! It's with Cocalico school district being a substitute paraprofessional(a teacher's aide).. I had an group interview on Thursday.. which was only filling out paper work.. like W-4's, direct deposit forms, tax exempt papers, retirement forms.... the next step is for me to get background clearance(criminal & child abuse) & getting a TB test(not looking forward to that one).. then once all that comes in, My info will go before the school board and get voted in.. so I could be employeed by Cocalico school district by Aug... no later than Sept!!

Here I am on before my interview...

Not the easiest to take a full length photo ;)

Swimming Lessons

I signed the boys up for swimming lessons through the local YMCA.. they had lessons Monday - Thursday from 8:40-9:10 in the morning.. it was bit early for us to get up and get motivated but we did it(& we weren't late). The lessons were for 2 weeks. They didn't pass the "guppy" but I think they learned the basics and I will continue to work with them at my mom's in her pool :)

CANNON BALL

Owen learning to do a kneeling dive

Carter floating with a nooodle

Carter jumping off of the diving board

As you can see they had tons of fun!!

10 years of love

Yesterday Jason & I celebrated our 10 year anniversary ♥ We can hardly believe that it has been 10 years already.. if the next 10 years go as fast as the first 10... Owen will be 19{gasp} Carter will be 16{and driving.. double gasp!} and Callie will be 13.. eeeekkkkk!! Not to mention that Jason & I will be in our 40's!


These 10 years have been filled with lots of ups & a few downs.. but I surely wouldn't want to spend the rest of my life with any other man!!





Jason bought me a beautiful ring...



I got him a new band {made out of stainless steel} but I gotta send it back.. It's too small :(

Rehoboth Beach, DE

on Thursday, July 2nd, we took a day trip with my mom & Cailan to the beach.

The drive there was a bit taxing... It was over 2.5 hrs. and Carter kept asking every 45 min. or so if we were there yet! Cailan finally showed him the road signs that showed how many more miles.. that helped A LOT!!

Once at the beach we had fun and the day passed really quickly {I think we shoulda left a bit earlier}!
The weather was absolutely beautiful for a day spent on the beach.. the high was aroun 79 or so with a breeze! The water was rough & there was no swimming due to the jelly fish, which were washing ashore... the kids had fun with them and even picked a few up with their hands{they didn't have any tentacles, so it was safe}

Callie and I had fun digging in the sand and I tried to make a sand castle but she was quick to smash whatever I done.

She was also a bit afraid of the water.Towards the end of the day she would venture out to get her feet wet but if she saw a big wave coming she would try to run from it... sometimes she would win.

We were lucky enough to see a pod of dolphins super close to shore.. they were hard to capture on camera though! Owen found a crab claw..

The waves were strong all day long.. they even knocked Carter down at one point & snagged Cailan's bottoms off her hiney.. good thing she's fast..LOL

we had a wonderful day with Nana at the beach

Father's Day.. twenty ten

Father's Day this year seemed a bit more special than those in the past.. Maybe it was due to the fact that my dad almost wasn't here for this one....

This year we celebrated like any other year.. Got up went to church & then headed over to my parents for a family cookout.. Hamburgers & sausage on the grill..YUMMM!

I didn't get dad anything really special this year.. just an outfit (I find him extremely difficult to shop for) But I made sure I gave him a hug at church and told him I love him & Happy Father's day!

The kids got Jason one of those zero gravity chairs.. He had mentioned in passing one day that he would like to have a recliner for outside.. that is exactly what the zero gravity chair is.. it even has a sun shade. We got him a lil side tray as well.. to hold his drink & whatever else he chooses

the highlight of the day was when dad told Eddy to flag down the icecream truck & have him come over to our house(my parents).. When that icecream truck pulled up in the yard playing it's famous tune the kids were beside themselves! Callie started jumping up & down yelling icecream over & over! that guy prolly had his best stop of the day right there in our yard!!

where did my baby go??

I can't believe that 3 yrs have gone by so quickly! Good bye diapers. Good bye bottles. Good bye baby!

Today I have reminisced on my delivery of our one & only lil girl.. I was to go in on the 14th to be induced but labor & delivery called me bright and early(6:30) to tell me they were full and to call on the 15th.. who does this to a just about to bust pregnant woman in June! Once there (on the 15th) I had the BEST delivery out of all 3 and she was my biggest at 8lbs 11oz!

Callie is so full of life & personality.. she has a stubborn streak a mile wide! She lives up to her hair color, that is for sure.

Some of Callie's favorite things are ♥ dollies ♥ babies ♥ dogs ♥ Dora ♥ barbie ♥ Autumn ♥ her daddy ♥ Good luck Charlie (show on Disney) ♥ her dinky(blanket)

She loves to ♥ spend the night with her nana & pap ♥ ride her new bike ♥ swing ♥ torment her brothers ♥ sing ♥ make a mess ♥ playing house ♥

She is afraid of ♥ worms ♥ the loudness of Pap's bike ♥ her daddy's power tools ♥

Callie is an amazing little girl who lights up our world & I couldn't imagine our life without her!

Happy 3rd Birthday Callie Alyssa

another year older

Yesterday I turned 33.. there was no celebration as I planned Callie's birthday party on the same day....

As I reflect what has happened in the past year I can see how blessed I am.. not just me but my whole family.

Some of the note worthy things that happened in a year(no particular order)

*visiting family * Disney World * seeing old friends * Dad surviving a massive heart attack * Owen struggling with school * Carter loosing his 1st tooth * Callie learning to pedal * trips to the zoo * making new friends * watching my children grow * several home improvements * letting go of lil Charlie * watching Carter flourish at school * surviving another year of soccer * trips with friends to the mountains * welcoming a new baby in our extended family * a blizzard * potty training Callie *

Life moves so quickly that it is hard to believe that another year has come & gone

Carter's Kindergarten Graduation

The school holds a lil "graduation ceremony" for the Kindergarten class.. It's so cute.. they sing a few songs ...then walk around with their "caps" on & then the teachers announce what they would like to be when they grow up.. there was A LOT of police officers in this years class.. Carter was not one of those..

Carter talking to his friend Grace

Walking in the procession

Carter & Mrs. White

His graduation gift