Summer fun

Our summer was filled with chores, playtime, parks, cousins, family time, etc. So I thought I'd just post some shots of things we do daily.

Kathryn posing.

Matthew had this kick where he took off all of his clothes except the diaper and put on Josh's rain boots..  He also has marker on his tummy.  This happens.  A lot.

They climbed trees

We did some crafts.. one was this. Light-sabers made out of pool noodles, duct tape and electric tape

Yeah! I just get a kick out of watching them beat on each other. 

Can you guess which ones I did vs.. the kid ones?  lol yes I'm kind of a Star Wars nerd

Josh lost a tooth

Water fun with our next-door cousins

I think we had popsicles at least once a day. I like to make them w/fruit juice, but this one is a bought one

So my brother made his daughter an amazing play house.. the kids love hanging out in there. It's so fun to live next door to cousins and have a yard to run around and explore in.

Matthew likes spraying water. He got me right in the face once.  Rascal!

A big tree was chopped down. These were some of the logs left over

 The summer was so fun.. I was sorry to see it go by! 

Chores

When the kids are home for the summer I love it.  It gives us a chance to do fun things and be together more.  It also becomes necessary to keep a loose schedule, as (ahem) some discipline issues can arise.  We have a chore chart we use, but I added a couple of things this summer as well. 

Bean Jar.  I added beans anytime I caught them being good.  When it was filled, they got a prize.

This was a lifesaver.  I filled a coffee can with ping pong balls, with jobs written on each.  Any time I heard "I'm bored" they had to do a ping pong job.  You get the Picture! :)

This can is filled with Rewards.  They complete a job, they get a reward.  This was a HIT! I don't know if you can read those but rewards include things like,  "You get to pick our dinner", "Go out with mom or dad", "Family game night", "Get a popsicle" 

I am a firm believer in loving your children and training them in what is right.  I absolutely mess up at times, but we try to teach them good qualities.. to work hard, have a good attitude, love others and be kind.  Maybe also that teacher part of me just wants to motivate them.. especially in a positive way.  If you are rewarded, you will work hard.  I work that way!  

Pokeman cake

Joshua turned 6 years old, and so of course I had to make him a fun cake.  He requested Poke-man, as that is his favorite thing --for the time being :).  Here is what we created for him.

Here a "middle of the process shot"

And completed cake.

Lapras (on top) is the only one made out of fondant.  The rest of the pokemon are toys the kids have

But everything else IS edible.

We wanted to get the Lettering to resemble the Pokemon logo

Happy 6th birthday my Joshua!

Yes, the inside even looks like a Pokeball.  It tasted good too :) Although the first thing the kids ate was Lapras..

July 4th and around

Fourth of July with Grandma and Grandpa

On the fourth of July, we were visiting Grandma and Grandpa.  It was nice and hot.. and we took a trip up to see a farm, etc.  When we arrived it was POURING rain.  So, instead of picking strawberries and seeing things outside, we had lunch inside this cute themed restaurant.

I love these pewter tankards!

Dining together

Their fun costumes

Kids looking at the firework show

Our family

Our family being silly

Kids and Grandpa

Kids and Grandma

Father's Day

Happy Father's Day to all of the Father's in my life!  I love my Daddy.. And I have a great Father-in-law, and 3 Grandpa-in-laws! Blessed!!

Here are some pics and stuff the kids did for their Daddy :)

 In honor of father's day, I had the kids answer some questions about their Dad.  (I stole this from my friend Laura's blog). 

The answers go William(7), Joshua(5), Kathryn(4), Matthew(2)

What is daddy's name? - Wesley/ Wes/ Wesley/name Daddy Wes

How old is daddy? - 31/ 21/ 32/he's Daddy
How tall is daddy? - 6 ft  /6 ft / as big as Ellen's Dad /Daddy 2 1
What color is daddy's hair? black/ black/ brown/ Daddy's hair green
What color are daddy's eyes? green /black /brown/Daddy's eyes white
What is daddy's favorite color? red/ red/red/two
What is daddy's job? he fixes things/works to get money for us/ work /Daddy work
What is daddy's favorite kind of music? i don't know/ trance/worship/music
What is daddy's favorite thing to eat? baked oatmeal/ pizza/crackers and dip/crackers
What is daddy's favorite thing to drink? soda/ root beer/milk/milk
What do you like most about daddy?  he plays games/ he's so nice/that he gives me hugs and kisses/Daddy give hug
What does daddy do best? -hug /work/play games/play with my T-rex

What is your favorite game to play with daddy? -baseball /Star Wars Battlefront 2/Mario Tennis/game

What does daddy know the most about? math /baseball/he knows everything/T-rex

What does daddy like to do for fun? play games/  Play World of Warcraft/games/play with my T-rex 

The kids also helped to make some red velvet cake balls from here

And then we made this card and they wrapped a couple gifts for him.  

Kathryn painted a paper, then we all cut out hearts from it. Matthew added his 'art' all over it too

My parents

My parents just celebrated their 56th anniversary together this weekend. 

I feel so blessed to be their 7th kid.  We have had a life of adventure, and there is so much that I have learned from both of them.  They spent almost 20 years serving as missionaries in Bangladesh, and after I was born we lived in Ecuador for 8 years.  My fondest memories of my childhood are traveling with the family, and living in our giant house next to a river and the church and school.  (My mom was the hostess of the guest house for the mission.  We had a HUGE house to live and play in because of that, and always met new people and had new friends to play with.)  

I have always watched my dad and his fire for sharing the gospel with everyone we meet. We couldn't go anywhere.. even gas stations without him talking to someone! He has such a care for people and always listens and helps... even to those others don't want to talk to.  My mom is always serving others with such a loving and giving heart.  She is the most patient woman, and is such a prayer warrior.   She home schooled us.  Both parents have taught us the important lessons of life.  Even now my parents continue to bless others.  We are so thankful to be living in their 'guest house' next to them.  What a blessing!

Their wedding picture. Aren't they gorgeous? 

Their first anniversary together they went on a boat ride to Catalina. 


And here they are.. 56 years later.  7 kids, 27 grandkids, and 4 great-grandkids as a part of their legacy. 

This time we came along on a boat ride in Long Beach. 

My friend Bety and I have been enjoying working on cakes, and we actually look for excuses to make a new cake and try new recipes and techniques :)  This was a perfect excuse to make a specialty cake.  

This was representative of their lives and travels together.  We replicated their blue suitcase that I remember. Then added the world with places they have lived marked.  The Bible is opened to Mark 16:15 He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.  We also added a rolled up map and a string of pearls, which represents this verse;   But store up for yourselves treasure in heaven,  Matthew 6:20a

Picture of the back and the wheel detail. This is so much fun :)

With just a few of their many grandchildren

 

 

 

Happy  Anniversary to my parents :)

End of the school year!

This picture seems like it was taken yesterday.  Joshua was one and William was 2 1/2.

This was them on the first day of school this year. 

Now, William will be in 3rd grade and Joshua has graduated from kindergarten! It is so amazing to see them grow and learn and flourish.  What a privilege it is to be a parent. 

They were blessed with great teachers who went above and beyond to keep communication open with us, to involve us in their learned and to challenge and teach our boys.

Here's some pictures of the graduation Joshua had... and we just had a little cake at my mom and dad's house that night to celebrate.  They proudly showed off their report cards and all of the projects they got to bring home. 

Joshua with his teacher

The cake.  Duplicated the little stuffed animal named "Ozzes" with modeling chocolate.  Kids had fun eating that! 

Congratulations to both of our wonderful boys on a successful school year!