Busy, Busy, Busy

Hello all. Just a short update to let everyone know that we are still on the face of the planet. We have been SO busy I haven't had much time to post. For the last couple of weeks we have been working on our new house after we get off work and in between practices and ballgames. Hopefully, we will make our move in date. It's amazing what a transformation our home is beginning to take. Everything is falling into place.... Thank the Lord. The kids absolutely LOVE being out in the country... and what a great place to raise kids! Thanks to Justin, we can finally see just how much land we have. We really have quite a bit with plenty of pasture for animals this next spring or summer. Once the house is done it'll be getting cold, so any work needing to be done outside will have to wait. This home is such a blessing. Soon, I promise to post pictures. And THANKS to all of our family for pitching in and working right alongside of us. We really do appreciate and love each one of you... and without your help, we wouldn't be as far along as we are!

We're finally "home"

Just a quick update..... WE HAVE BOUGHT A HOUSE and will be moving very soon! We just found out today that our offer was accepted. We are so excited to finally be home.... and our new house is such a great fit for us. I'll post pictures as soon as I can. Here are some of the details:

4 bedroom country farmhouse (could be 5 bedroom)
huge eat in country kitchen
sits on over 2 acres of land
2 plus car garage
huge horse barn
very nice setting

So wish us luck.... we have alot of work to do between now and our move in date. We'll be ripping up carpets, painting, cleaning and MOWING!

Taylor's 11th Birthday...

Taylor chose to have a swim party at Aunt Shannon's house this year. So, seven of her friends came over and had a great time. Instead of a cake, we had a chocolate fountain.... with lots of sweet treats to dip. After eating, swimming, and opening gifts, the girls made a scrapbook page for Taylor.. with a picture of themselves included. It was a great tween girl party!

It takes a village....

To arm wrestle Daddy! Kaitlyn, Jake's girlfriend, challenged Derrick to a competition. Here she is pictures trying with all her might...... The others decide to join in and offer some help!

My Freshmen and my 5th grader...

Every year Jake and Taylor head back to school means another year closer to when they leave the nest. I'm so proud of all my kids. Jake and Taylor have had to overcome some pretty crappy times in their lives but these two just take it in stride and make theirselves better people because of it. They are so giving and so compassionate... it makes me smile to no end. Of course this year Jake REALLY didn't want to pose for a picture (especially outside where someone might see him:) LOL....

Triple Trouble heads to school...

Aubrey, Broc, and Cain headed to school on August 11th. They were so excited to go and I was so happy that this year they are going together! They are in their third week and are doing great! Bedtime is no longer a struggle.... they are happy to rest after having such busy days!

Quality time together...

While the Indiana State Fair was in town, Derrick and I decided to take a day off work to spend together... as a time to relax before the hustle and bustle of fall begins. We accompanied Mike and Shannon.... who treated us to a free dinner at the pork tent. We had a really nice time just being together and enjoying each other. Like I've always said, " Having a happy family means having a happy mommy and daddy." And the best way to get that is to take time for yourself and each other. As a matter of fact, we took today off too:) Here's just a few pics of what I saw.

Our trip to the zoo..

We decided to take a trip to the zoo as a "last bit of fun" before school started back up. We made plans with the Crider family to meet them at the zoo and we could all hang out together. Well needless to say, a zoo trip is not the place to catch up on small talk. I think we passed the Crider's once or twice and waved but we decided it is way too heard to keep our two large families together at the zoo! Anyway, we had a great time.... we enjoyed a picnic lunch and strolled though the animals. We took a vote and the kids' favorite place to be was petting the sharks! Of course, we enjoyed the dolphin show too! Here are pics from our trip:

Cain's HAPPY BOTTLE....

Cain started play therapy three weeks ago and he's doing good. I'm learning so much from the therapist and we working diligently with Cain. Last week we worked on anger and misbehaviors. For family time the therapist has us make HAPPY BOTTLES with the kids. It's just a clear bottle with a splash of paint (a color that makes the childs feel happy.... of course Cain's was red), and then you add in sequins, buttons, and a "special rock". The objest is to get the child to use the bottle when he's angry or when he feels an outburst coming.

When we made this one I placed a small pink heart in there and told Cain. I told him I loved him very much and when he was angry and playing with his bottle to look for that heart mommy put there because I love him so. And much to our surprise, it works. He starts and we run to get that bottle. I take him someplace quiet and I tell him to find mommy's heaart. Minutes later, it's over and we can go on.

We're on session 3 with 5 more to go and then we see where to go from there. His therapist is awesome and very kid friendly.... we're lucky to have her!

Neew spec's.....

After Jake had his physical done for football, he told his he had 20 vision in one eye and 35 in the other, so off to the eye doctor we went.... where we learned that Jake is color blind (who knew?) and he had to have glasses...... So here he is in his new specs.

Later Jake says to me, "So, you mean Mamaw's jeep isn't blue?" Ah no, it's green.

He's my handsome man....

More pictures at Chuck E. Cheese

Chuck E. Cheese compliments of Grandma Dianne....

A few weeks ago Shannon found an old $25 savings bond that belonged to our mom. Shannon called me up and said she thought she'd just cash it and we'd take the grandkids to Chuck E. Cheese. Well, that 25$ bond netted us about 130$ so off to Chuck E. Cheese we went. With the help of the older boys (Jake Aaron and his friend Thomas) the kids ended up with well over 1,000 tickets... so they all got some cool prizes. Afterwards, we still had some money left so we went next door and the kids got ice cream at Cold Stone Creamery. We had such an awesome time. Thanks Grandma Dianne.... we know you were there in spirit playing right alongside us!

Old Jake, new Jake....

Jake is oficially FREE of braces. He was so excited to finally get them off and his teeth look great. Now he has retainers to wear. He looks like a new kid! Here are before and after pics:

July 4th

Our July 4th was spent at Aunt Shannon's house. We spent the day swimming and having a cookout. Later we went into town to watch the awesomw fireworks show. We always at Wesley Manor and it's so nice there...and safe. The kids can run around and have a great time. HEre are pics of the kids swimming and of Daddy doing a firworks show for us.

Beah Bum Fun....

We went camping at Missesinewa (sp?) a few weeks ago. Mike, Shannon and Aaron accompanied us. On Saturday Dave, Logan and Landree joined us. Jake and Aaron's girlfriends also came up for the night. Now to be clear... the girls had their own tents. There was no hanky panky going on. We had a great time! I give that place 5/5 stars. It was very well maintained. Here are some pics of us at the beach....

Updates coming soon...

Hi everyone. Sorry it's been so long since I posted last. We have been so busy and I just haven't taken the time to stop and post. I hope to be able to sit down and post lots of great pictures this evening. So, check back soon!

Creative minds...

The kids decided to take a plain, ordinary box and turn it into a pirate ship complete with a broon oar. Pretty clever huh? And the best part was, it provided hours of fun!

More pictures of the big day...