Wednesday, October 3, 2012

My How You Have Grown

5 years ago this evening we learned that tomorrow was the big day. The 9 weeks of bedrest were over, the 8 months of being pregnant with twins was over, and Oct. 4 would be when we got to meet our little boys. Hard to believe 5 years have gone by since then. They were so tiny when they were born and now I can barely pick them up. I'm not entirely unsure Ben won't be taller than me in the next couple years. They are the most amazing little boys and we're so excited to wish them a very happy 5th birthday!

Who looks like Who?


Ben, I love the passion you bring to life. When you feel a certain way, it radiates throughout you. Your excitement is contagious and your creativity inspiring. We can often find you lost in a book, working on an art project, or running through the house dressed up and in the middle of your own little superhero world. We love you so much!


Matt, your determination and perseverance inspire me and remind me not to give up too easily. I am so impressed that you have learned how to snap your fingers and how you stuck with it until you got it. You've never met a ball you didn't like, and it's exciting to see you really excel in soccer this year. I love how observant you are and how tapped in to other people you can be. You always seem to know just when I need a hug and your hugs are the best! Love you!

Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Jake Inhales His First Coney

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Um, Jake......you've got a thing......right there....no on the left......no your left. IMG_7709
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Monday, September 10, 2012

He Did It

I'll be honest. I'm not sure what's going on here, but I'm pretty sure Jake is trying to convince me its Duncan's fault.
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Sunday, September 9, 2012

Saturday, September 8, 2012

We All Scream For Ice Cream!

In July, we took Jake to get his first ice cream cone.

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And he loved it!

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He did pretty well with it too - who do you think was the messiest? :)

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Friday, September 7, 2012

New Car Seats

This is another one that got lost in the shuffle last spring... Jake's move to a front-facing car seat and Ben's move to a booster seat with a seat belt. As you can probably guess, Jake LOVED being forward-facing, and in the video picks right up on what his brothers like to do in the car - read!

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Thursday, September 6, 2012

Threshing Bee

When we were in Rochelle in August, we all ventured to our first Threshing Bee (a fair of sorts to commemorate harvesting grain?)

There were huge piles of straw the kids had fun playing in...

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...steam-powered machines...

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...and fun things to ride on!

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Wednesday, September 5, 2012

Cousins are a Blast!

Between a weekend back in Rochelle and a visit from Mike, Shannon, Audrey, and Tommy, the boys got lots of playtime with their cousins this past month. They had so much fun together. Matt said recently, "I'm going to marry Audrey because she's my favorite girl!"

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Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Dance Moves!

Jake shows off his new dance moves!


Monday, September 3, 2012

1st Day of School

Matt and Ben started their first day at St. Ursula Villa on Aug. 22. Now that they have their first full week under their belt, they really seem to be liking it. They've made some new friends, really enjoy their specials (art, library, etc...), and are super-excited about their superhero lunchboxes :)

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You don't mind if I crash in your room, do you?

We woke up this past Thursday morning to find Matthew asleep on our floor. Not sure when during the night he came in... or how many trips he made to bring most of his bed with him :)

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Catching Up - Take Two

Yes, that would be snow... the one and only snow we got last winter! Not even enough in most years to justify the putting on of all the snow gear and playing in it. But this past winter, we went all out and had a lot of fun in it!



Jake didn't want to be left out of all the fun!

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Sunday, July 22, 2012

Easter in July

Somehow we posted about Easter egg coloring back in April, but completely missed these cute pictures from the Easter egg hunt. It was so much fun this year with all 5 grandkids joining in!

Determined Ben, racing off to find the next egg!



Jake finding eggs with Papa - including a really, really BIG one!


 

Yay Tommy!



Audrey and her basket full of eggs. 



Matt looking for more eggs.