New door (color)!

We had painted the front door a coastal island light blue color, but we didn't really like it. I got the wreath at Costco, and used some paint we had gotten years ago to paint the door in Atlanta. I love this color.

Homecoming

Sarah, a friend from work, came to help do make up.


Karis got a new pair of shoes, but was afraid they would make her too tall. No worries, Zach is quite a bit taller than she.














His name is Zach Howard and we knew him and his parents from Four Oaks. They work together at Chick-fil-A, and go to school together. He loves the Lord and respects her commitment to not date seriously until after high school.

Football

This is the third or fourth year we've been involved with flag football, but the first that only Jack is playing, and Robin is his coach.






















Jack gets to hike the ball.










he's an awesome flag puller. all the opposing coaches so far have commented on his flag-pulling talent.













it must have to do with his focused concentration....











here he prevented a touchdown (check out his air-born-ness!)


we love watching you, Jack

more Destin, and an experiment

i'm trying a different size picture to see what happens.

pete didn't care that the tube was pink. he was loving just floating around









karis at 17. what else can be said? she's beautiful













and this is so typical of nick at 14. always with food in his mouth/hand, asking where the food is, thinking about food, hungry for food.....








so is the dad worn out from working hard to provide all that food? or just enjoying a day away from suits/ties and the office? we appreciate you, honey.












olivia worked hard in the sand. and didn't want to get too close to this jellyfish that we caught (and karis got stung by one too---not fun).

Cake and favorite gift

we found some sparklers left over from 4th of July that added some excitement to his cake
in this picture you can see his box of football guys that is his absolute favorite
he plays on the kitchen floor while I cook (and think about that....there's not much foot room to begin with).
he plays on the coffee table anytime anyone is watching television
this is not a hug. it's a "mmmoooommmmm, juliet is on my football field, get her OFF"

Pete is 3!

It's been hard enough for him to have "his kids" at school all day, he hated to wait until they got home from school to open his presents (especially since a big brother had football practice, which meant he couldn't celebrate until after 8 pm). so he waited until mom was busy with laundry/dinner and snuck into mom and dad's room where the presents were wrapped and had a fine time unwrapping them by himself.
this was his expression for opening the presents from Grandma and Grandpa
doing the Happy Birthday dance after finding candy in his package.....
He got a bunch of "practical life activities" stuff which is Montessori slang for kitchen stuff from the dollar section at Target. He didn't like the chef's hat, but big bro Mike did
so, since he's 3 now and has all this kitchen stuff, he decided to make his own cake. fun!

Happy 10th, J.

Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday dear JA_ACK. Happy Birthday to you!
Spy stuff is all the rage this year to this boy, anyway. His sister already knows she's his partner.
The cake was a visual disaster, but a taste bud feast. It was chocolate mousse filling/icing but it was just a little too runny (I'm thinking the extreme heat/humidity had something to do with it).
Just one of the examples of how this boy brings smiles and hands them out as he goes around. We love you, Jack, and are so glad we get to be your family....

Fancy dresses

Haley and her friend Samantha met their friend Sierra at TRBC to be greeters for their women's ministry kick off meeting. It was a tea party theme and they were supposed to make the women feel special. It was the Tuesday after we went to Destin, so Haley looks super tan!

Destin

why we love it---white sand, clear blue water (then emerald, deep blue) no wonder they call it the "emerald coast."
a beautiful 16yo under a colorful umbrella
end of day "party of 7" photo---how very, deeply thankful I am for these precious seven....
and the creative 16yo who knows how to do this...... (must. request. tutorial.)

Tropical Storm Fay

It was so humid out the camera lens kept fogging up. Here's the dock (which last week was overlooking a DRY lake).
Here's the boat ramp (where? you say? exactly. under water) and the parking lot.
Jack found this worm which looks to me a little too much like a snake. it was dead, so no bother.
this is the street that looks towards our street. the water actually was coming out the drainway.
and this is the smaller lake that the bigger lake is supposed to drain into. again, it was completely dry last week, and now you can barely even see the tunnel.

Olympics/First Day of School

These boys were intensely reading all the statistics in this book while the olympics were on tv.
Mike (kindergarten) and Jack (4th grade) on their way to De Soto Trail Elementary.
Haley (10th), Nick (9th), and Karis (12th) on their way to Lawton Chiles High School.
last but not least, Olivia (7th) on her way to Montford Middle School
and Pete, just not sure where his place is, or what he's supposed to do.

Up Close and "Purr-sonal"

Jack's first homework assignment, due the first day of school (tomorrow) goes like this:

What kind of book (sic) do you most like to read? history
Where might someone have see you this summer? Sunday school
Name the famous person you most admire: Walt Disney (he just read a biography)
Name two of your strengths: math and history
In which school subject are you likely to do well? math
What are two things you'll never do during your spare time? take naps and watch tv (ha ha)
What food do you most like to eat? steak
What goal do you have for this year? to get an A Plus
What do you do during your spare time? read
Where in the world would you most like to visit? Italy
Name a topic you'd like to study this year: science
Would you rather work alone, with a partner or in a group? a group (no surprise there)
What job would you like to do when you're older? football

and last but not least, with which friend do you spend the most time? my sister, Olivia.

Jack, you'll be missed.

Thanks Mom and Jerry

Here's what the flowers you sent me look like. The ones just stuck in are gone now, but the plant is doing well as a centerpiece on the kitchen table. It brings a smile to my face every time I walk by.

Liv gets glasses

what do you think?

another Mike funny

that I've already told you all about but am posting because I'm afraid I'll forget.


Mike learned to read pretty easily--right after his 5th birthday. He continues to surprise us with his interpretation of the English language.

He came out of the shower one day asking in a desperate voice, "WHY. do we wash our HAIR. in POO?" when we inquired what he was talking about, he showed us the shampoo bottle and said, "see? sham- POO. what *is* a sham and why do we wash our hair in its poo?"

smile :) he'll keep his kindergarten teacher on his/her toes!

The number 9

A few months ago, when Chick-fil-A was giving away free (.....I can't remember what. a sandwhich? milkshake? something worth wearing 9) to everyone who wore the number 9 (their anniversary) I took these pictures of the 9s we found on clothing.
Can you guess which shirt belongs to which kid?













and I got to thinking about the number 9. there are 9 people in our family. my grandfather had 9 toes. I lived 9 different places (as in homes/apartments/dorms) before getting married. I have been pregnant 9 times. I do at least 9 loads of laundry a week. I am blessed to live with my favorite 9 year old on the planet!

I think 9 is a fun number. How 'bout you?