Route 32??

Just a quick, funny story from our drive with the boys this morning:

We were in the car and drove past Route 31. Jackson asked what the name of the road was and we told him, "That's Route 31." He then asked what the name of the next road was and neither one of us knew what it was called. Jackson said, "I know! It's Route 32!" Such cute and funny (and smart) logic from our 4-year-old!! Gotta love it!!

It's all in the chase!

What could have Jackson and Joshua so excited and playing so well together? What are they chasing after??

Okay, we're closer! Any guesses??

There!! It's a cute, little rabbit! Jackson and Joshua chased this little guy for a while and then they just watched him hiding in our bushes!

Hmmm, what was Jonathan doing while his big brothers were intrigued by the rabbit? Being cute, exploring.....

and sampling some grass, of course! Yum!! :)

Update on Grandpa

Grandpa Avery had his doctor appointment yesterday, but there really is no news. He's on steroids to help reduce some of the swelling. He'll go back to the doctor on Tuesday for pathology or a biopsy. So, now we wait until Tuesday! The waiting is so hard, but in the meantime we continue to pray for good news!!

Prayer request

Bad/sad news is never easy to share, but I'm going to, in hopes that you'll start praying!! Yesterday we received news that AW's dad has a brain tumor. Allen and Janelle are on their way to the States to seek the best possible treatment for this very unexpected and shocking news! The doctor in South Africa diagnosed him yesterday, right before they were supposed to leave for a several week long trip to Zambia and Zimbabwe. They should be here within a day or so. Would you please pray!! Pray that the doctors can spot the problem area and quickly and efficiently resolve it!! We should know more soon and we'll post more when we know more! Right now we just know that God is in control and he isn't surprised by any of this!! We know the Great Physician can heal Allen! Thanks so much for praying for our family!!

Not Me! Monday

(I did not put on a cartoon for the boys to watch, just so I can finish up my NMM post! Nope!! I never use TV to get a few quiet moments!!) :)

I did not agree to let my husband go paintballing with a fellow Marine and then I most certainly did not try to make him feel guilty about going and leaving me with the boys for a whole day, especially since I was with them the whole week! Nope! That wasn't me! I never try to make my husband feel guilty for having some guy time!

I did not leave the laundry to be piled up all weekend long and there are not three loads waiting for me in my room to fold them! I did not just close the door to my bedroom and pretend that they're not there!! Nope! I always keep up with the housework around here!!

I did not take my boys to the mall yesterday, just so we'd have something to do. We did not go to Build-a-Bear and spend silly amounts of money on a monkey and a panda bear! I did not realize that spending money (or at least charging it) can make me feel better!! On our way to the car yesterday, we did not get caught in the downpour!! I was not totally soaked down to my underclothes and my boys were not hysterical about being drenched!

I did not let my 8-month-old cry it out for naptime! I was not an emotional wreck about it, and did not go to him after an hour, just to hold him till he settled down! I will probably not hold him till he falls asleep for all his naps today!! Nope!! I'm not a softie when it comes to my boys crying!!


We did not finally have a nice summer day around here and we did not set up the kiddie pool!! It was not Jonathan's first time in there and I was not scared the whole time that his brothers would try and splash him or dunk him! The boys did not love having Baby J with them and they were not completely perfect!! The boys and I did not have a great time!!! :)

This fun blog carnival was created by MckMama! Check out her site and see what she and everyone else has been up to this week!!

An afternoon in the pool

We (finally) had a perfect summer day today! Perfect for lounging splashing and playing in the kiddie pool! This was Jonathan's first time in the pool and he loved it! He loved splashing and his big brothers were happy to also help! It was a fun afternoon!

The boys' bathroom

I have many super talented friends!! Becky is a very talented and artistic baker. Shelley takes phenomenal photos (she took some of our family two weeks ago and they are beautiful!). Laura is a fashion guru and always pulls off every outfit! Lori is great at scrapbooking, and super quick, too! I am surrounded by great friends, however, this post is about my friend Michelle who is just so talented with a paintbrush!! She's the art teacher at our school and a good friend. Her boys and our boys have become fast friends! :) She came over last week to paint the boys' bathroom and the results are fantastic!! See for yourself!
Don't you just love tiny toes?! The starfish and waves frame the boys' footprints so well!!


I think the turtle is my favorite!!
Jackson and Joshua love their new bathroom and have taken all our guests to see it!! :)

Michelle, you did such a great job!! We love it!! Thank you so much!! :)

our weekend

If you want a straight and honest answer--come, see me, I'll usually tell you what I think, whether it's good or bad. I don't mince words; I hate beating around the bush. Just say it! (My husband is great for helping me temper my words, at least in emails. Many emails don't leave this house without his perusal first.) I don't know if that makes any sense. Anyway, all that to say that I won't be saying anything about our weekend, even though there's much to say. For once, I think I'll do the un-Emma thing and not say a thing! For those of you that prayed for our weekend, thank you for praying! For those of you wanting the skinny on it, you won't find it here! If you have a question or want to know something, email me!

8 years!!

Today is our 8-year anniversary! Wow! That went by way too quickly!! It has been an amazing 8 years married to my sweetie! We may not be perfect (far from it) but we are perfect for each other! I know it's cheesy, but AW completes! He complements me in so many ways! When I am stressed out, he calms me down, when I am sad, he cheers me up, when I get worried, he reassures me. I am married to the most wonderful, caring, generous, loyal man who just also happens to be the best daddy to our boys! He is teaching our boys to respect their mommy and to be gentlemen! I love that! He wrestles with them on a nightly basis and allows them to be boys, in ways that a mommy can't. He works so hard for us so I can be home and raise our children, which is a true blessing!

When we were in our dating or engaged phase, I made a list of 25 reasons why I love AW! There are so many more reasons why I'm in love with my husband, these 8 years later, but let's just see what the list says!! AW, I love you more today than I did when we got married! I hope we have 80 more years together!!

1. You are incredible!

2. You make me melt every time we kiss

3. You run with me (we need to get back to that one!!)

4. We always laugh

5. You have an incredible life story

6. You look great in a uniform (or a suit)

7. You let me wear your cammies (AW is a Marine!!)

8. You make me smile

9. You let me drive your car

10. You respect me

11. You let me take care of you when you are sick

12. You have an incredible accent

13. You cook dinner for me

14. You give great massages

15. You get along great with my family

16. You make me feel safe and comfortable

17. You let me cry on your shoulder

18. You care about me a lot

19. You call and leave sweet messages

20. You hold me close and give me goose bumps

21. You give great compliments

22. You are a great cuddle partner

23. You are fun to shop with

24. You are my huckleberry!

25. You love me!!

How can we add to that list??? Let's try these, for starters!!

1. You provide for our family so I can stay home

2. You pray for me and with me every night

3. You love our boys unconditionally

4. You allow me to have time to scrapbook and you support me in my interests, like cooking currently!!

5. You love Jesus and lead our family so well

6. You listen to me when I need to share something and don't try to fix it right away

7. You are so wonderfully handy around the house

8. You don't complain about getting up in the middle of the night (not once!!)

9. You have strong opinions and convictions, and you don't back down

10. You drive that old Corolla and gave up on your Tundra, so the boys and I could have the Pilot

11. You take out the trash every Monday

12. You tackle my honey-do list for you without grumbling

13. You were there for me during the birth of our three boys, supporting me and cheering me on, especially during those crazy hours before I got the epidural

14. You watch girly movies with me, even though there are lots of shows you'd rather watch

15. You are the best husband and daddy in the world and the boys and I are so blessed to have you!!

Happy Anniversary!! I love you to the moon and back, my huckleberry!!

Then....August 4, 2001

Now.... the whole family of five at the truck show this weekend

Crawling Update!

Jonathan is now officially on the move... and pretty fast! He got to the first step in the loft and attempted to go downstairs, before we even realized it! He's doing the inchworm, belly crawl, which is so cute!! Jackson and Joshua are excited to see him move---little do they realize that now he'll be getting into their stuff a whole lot more!!

Life is going by way too fast!! Tomorrow is my 8-year anniversary to my incredible husband!! This month Jackson turns 4!! Jonathan is crawling and growing up! Joshua is now fully in is 2's!!

Don't blink!!

Trucks!!

Boys + trucks = a winning combination!! We loved the truck show this year!! The helicopter landing and taking off was the highlight of the (wet) morning!!


This was an awesome part of the day!! I love how Jackson's glued to the fence and Joshua just looks so intrigued by the whole thing!