Happy Fall

It has been so warm here the pat few days.  Our mums are gorgeous but with the warm weather are covered in bees which makes picture taking with the kids nearly impossible.  Today fall is literally "blowing" in with a strong cool wind.  So I'm hoping to get pictures of the kids with the flowers.

This weekend we are having celebration #1 for Dominic's birthday with my family.  Since the weather is turning, we will carve pumpkins inside this year.  Dominic wants a Star Wars themed cake too.  So I decided to be easy on myself and make a giant light saber out of cake.

The new house plans are pulling together nicely.  We have run into a few design issues that are being worked out - mainly with the layout of the kitchen, Dominic's bathroom, and Luke & Isaac's bathroom.  We are hoping to the have the design of the house completed by the end of the year.

School Pictures 2012

We are so thrilled with the boys school pictures this year.  They both look great!

Dominic:

Luke:

Happy Birthday Babe!

We celebrated Mark's 45th birthday and Isaac's 15M birthday last week.  The boys were excited about Daddy's baseball cake!

Cardinal's Post Season Game

We had been trying to come up with a great birthday gift for Dominic.  Mark surprised us with tickets to the Cardinal's Post Game #3.  It was touch and go with the weather but the rain stayed away until half way through the 7th inning.  We choose not to wait out the 3.5 hour delay to watch the end of the game.  But we had a great time.

Isaac stayed home and had a great afternoon/evening with his cousin, Amanda.

Happy Anniversary

Happy 13th Anniversary to my Prince Charming (a day early)!

I have always loved the poem “These Hands”.  I think it really does explain the relationship between a married couple.

I was thinking about this poem as our 13^th anniversary approaches.  Thirteen years of marriage.  We have been together for 17 years – nearly half of my life.  I know some people speak of the “one that got away”….I have never thought that.  Mark is my one….and he will continue to be the one as years pass.  I can’t imagine my life now if Mark was not a part of it.

So here is my version of Mark’s Hands.

These are the hands that led me around a dance floor the night we met.  These are the hands that continue to hold doors for me.  These are the hands that held mine as he proposed and placed my engagement ring on my finger.  These are the hands that held mine as we wed and danced the night away.  These are the hands that taught me how to hold a catfish, drive a tractor, use a riding mower, and back up a trailer.  These are hands that held me tight as I cried sitting on the kitchen floor when I told him we would probably never be parents.  These are the hands that held mine through each doctor’s appointment, negative pregnancy test, needle pokes, and mood swings.  These are the hands that held me tight as we cried hearing our unborn son’s heartbeat for the first time.  These are the hands that held mine when Dominic and Luke took their first breaths of life.  These are hands that held me close as we sat on the bathroom floor and grieved the loss of our unborn child.  These are the hands that learned to change diapers, feed bottles, and nurse a bloody knee.  These are the hands that couldn't wait to hold his 3^rd son in his arms.   These are the hands that love being a father and a husband.

These are the hands, while some times calloused and older now, are the hands that made a promise a long time ago.  These hands promised to be there no matter what.  These hands hold up 4 other people and we all know his strength and love is enough.

These hands promised forever and for always. 

These hands promised for better and for worse. 

Life just can’t get any better as long as Mark’s hands are holding mine.

Happy Anniversary, Babe.

Happy Birthday to my Birth Mother!

Isaac's birth mother's birthday was this past week.  He sent her this special gift!

Water Park Fun

We enjoyed a very fun (and exhausting) day at an indoor water park.  The water and air temperature were great - warm.  They boys played so hard and wore themselves out - and us.  Isaac took a nap in the stroller, Luke fell asleep in a deck chair, and Dominic slept for 2 hours on the way home!

Gotta love Game Day!

Mother-Son Stampede 2012

Dominic and Luke took me to the Mother-Son Stampede this fall.  I would like to say we had a great time...but they were not in very good moods and we spent most of the hour we were there either walking around or standing in line to shoot the bow.  I may try it again next year with just Luke (Dominic does not like crowds) to see if it goes better.  If not, I will just wait for our attention seeker, Isaac, to come along so we can have a great time!