Summer is finally here.  School is out, business is slow, and I have had time to hang out with the kids.  This last week has been very refreshing for me.  Not that I've been sitting around...but I haven't been saying all day long, "I can't get everything done!"

Pretty much all I have to show for the week are pictures of my plants--Mom and Grandma, these are for you. :)  This family likes to take pictures of our plants (and our food) so I might as well write to my #1 fans.  (And after I show-and-tell about my plants, I'll stick some in of the kids.)

I am definitely experiencing garden envy.  Our friends and neighbors are already harvesting from their gardens.  How can I never get our plants out early enough?  How do people know when to plant?  Do I need a farmer's almanac or something?  My pepper plants and tomato plants are still in pots.

They are doing well, and are starting to make buds, but I've got to get them transplanted...which means I've got to figure out how I'm going to water them...

This little plant almost bit the dust, but now it's doing fine.  I can't remember the name of it, and I can't find all the care-tags.  You know where we put those, Mom?

The elephant ear Mom planted from a bulb is up and growing.  It gets bigger each day, and the kids (er, William mostly) love checking on its progress.

I know you can't tell, but that green haze is my asparagus plants.  Five of the six bulbs came up, which is amazing, considering they looked dead when Mom planted them.  We got them for 50 cents a piece on sale at Wal-Mart.  

I just put pinestraw around them yesterday, but then I started second guessing that.  Is the whole point for them to go to seed?  If so, I can't imagine pinestraw will facilitate that.  Mom?

They are making nice little flowers, that look like dainty little bells.  So delicate and pretty.

My hibiscus are blooming beautifully!  (forgot to take a picture of those)  BUT, one of them is making so many yellow leaves that it is starting to look sparse.  I started watering it every other day, and watering it more deeply, but I can't see any change yet.  I know...I know, Mom, I should call the plant nursery and ask them about it.  Where are you when I need you to make me get things done??

Enough with the plants.

Tim and I got a lot of laughs yesterday out of watching William.  It was Saturday, and William's creative juices were at a peak.  Tim worked in the morning, but once he came home, William was ready to get working.  On what?  Well...good question.  How about a marble track?  Out of wood?  With grooves and holes and hinges and turns and everything under the sun?  He could talk - and did - about his plans for his marble track forever!  Seeing as that would be too complicated, how about a _______?  He had so many ideas...not one of which was reasonable.  Maybe he could go to Nebraska for a month and take carving lessons from Great Grandpa?  (that's his idea, not mine, as you well might think :)

In the end, he and Daddy went outside and got busy making a bow and arrows.  William has been longing for a real bow and arrows for a couple years now.  Nerf ones, and cheap-o Dollar Tree ones haven't satisfied him.  We'll see if this set does. 

Tim stayed real busy...

He cut and notched a good number of "arrows"...

William was very proud of his bow...

The "arrows" still don't have points or feathers...but that just leaves William more fun work to do.  Tim got an idea in his head for me to make William a quiver...and with how patiently and willingly he had given up his afternoon for our visionary son, how could I not?

Let me tell you...we have one happy camper.

The other 2 boys patiently kept themselves busy...

...while we filled William's love tank.  Boy, his tank takes more filling, but the rewards are great indeed.

We also got in a swim...

William and Samuel were content to have their pictures taken...

But Trevor preferred videos...

1-going for a big splash...

2-getting a big splash...

3-getting a tad more fancy...

4-and a token video of Samuel looking every bit of the big boy that his brothers are...

And speaking of Samuel looking like a big boy...when I cut his hair yesterday, I asked how short he wanted it. I meant the back of his hair, but he told me he wanted it as short as William's. It almost made my stomach drop. He's been asking to have his hair like William's for over a year, and somehow I knew it was time to let him do it. I almost wanted to cry as I shaved away all his pretty, soft babyish hair. But, it made him happy, and it's summer, after all. I guess, just like everyone keeps telling him, he's not the baby anymore!


Looking at him makes me think of this movie:

...it's one I can't remember much about except that it made me sad.

It's hard letting my "baby" grow up...but I know that come October, it's gonna happen real fast!

Almost There!

School's almost out! Trevor and William have ONE more day, and Samuel is DONE!

First day of school:


Last day of school:


Look at him wearing coat! Crazy kid. I had to make him take off his long sleeve shirt and wear a short sleeve instead. Here's another from the last day, going in to his Kindergarten Program:


He did a great job in his program, and it was so fun to watch him. Apparently you have to arrive there super early to get a good seat. I was just glad were were there on time, and not late.


That's the best my little camera's zoom would do. Each Kindergartner had a part doing something...singing, speaking, bells, or something. Samuel had a speaking part. He said Psalm 92:1, "It is good to sing praises to God." We did some practicing before we went. He has a hard time saying it all without stuttering. He doesn't have a classic stutter, it's more of a...I don't know...hiccup or something. Like this:

It is goo--ood to sing pra--aises to God.
or
It is good to--oo sing praises to Go--od.
or
It is good to sing--ing praises to God.

Poor kid. We mostly ignore it, but this time we practiced saying the whole thing with out stopping in the middle. He did it once at home. He just had one "hiccup" at the program. I thought that was pretty good, since I'm sure he was nervous. I would be too, if I had to wear that hat in front of all those people...


Afterwards we went out for frozen yogurt at the "new" place in town. Then we went out to pick up a truck that we are borrowing from some friends while we try to find a replacement for Tim's. Yep...his died. I guess his engine just locked up, and the repair shop says they have to replace it.

Yesterday we went out to Landmark Park to feel the animals. That's always fun.







Afterwards Mr. Sid quoted a poem by James Whitcomb Riley to the kids. He did Little Orphan Annie (nothing like the movie!) It was quite impressive! That's Trevor's friend, Clark, listening very intently. Wonder if I'll ever get the kids to quote like that?


Gotta work on dinner!

The Best 10 Years of My Life...

...have been spent with this guy.


It all started 10 years ago, right here with our first kiss...

...and we've been kissing ever since. In 10 years, he hasn't once missed giving me a kiss before he leaves for the day--that's something that really blesses me!

So, we celebrated our 10 year anniversary this month! As I was thinking about these last 10 years, and how blessed I am through Tim, I remembered some verses from Joel that I had memorized back when I was single...

"I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten...You will have plenty to eat, until you are full, and you will praise the name of the LORD your God, who has worked wonders for you; never again will my people be shamed...Then you will know that I am in Israel, that I am the LORD your God, and that there is no other; never again will my people be shamed."

Now, I didn't ever have any crops that locusts ate, and I know this verse was for the Israelites, but I did have some hurts. Some hurts I brought on myself, and others God permitted me to encounter. During a season of my college years, God really worked on me...healing my heart. Those verses about being repaid gave me encouragement.

And now? I could never have imagined how wonderful my life could be...what bliss there could be in marriage...what joy there could be in a husband. God has indeed repaid me, and I praise him!

Tim is the most patient, kind, fun man I know. Plus, he's a hunk. I'm SO blessed to be his wife!

One of the things I love best about Tim is that he loves what I love (reading, watching movies, and working with my hands) but he also draws me into fun things that I wouldn't naturally do.

For instance, I like the outdoors, but I enjoy it just as much from inside as I do from out...yet here we are on our 5th anniversary...


And, I like to eat, but I'd just as soon let someone else cook than do it myself. But, Tim makes it fun! He loves to cook, and is really good at it.


Plus, he looks really fine in ladies sunglasses...(and isn't afraid to wear them!)


He is my best friend, and I love spending every day of my life with him.

Here's the 2 pictures we took of us on our 10 year trip...




At least we took those!!

On our trip we did a fair amount of reminiscing, talking, reading, and relaxing. It was great.

And now here we are...back to normal life. Wonderwoman has gone home (along with Super Grandpa). Normal life can be crazy, but it has its fine moments, too. Last night we cooked out, and enjoyed the beautiful weather. I loved looking out my kitchen window while we were getting ready...


We did a lot of work on the patio while WW was here, and it paid off.

(Yes, the kids are in their pajamas. They wore them ALL DAY. Good grief. They LOVED it!)

Evenings like that make normal life wonderful!

As cheesy as it may be, I have to say:

Tim, I love you! I'm so thankful that you married me, and that I can trust you to stick with me 'til the end. You are my hero. Happy Anniversary.