dreamland

I feel like I'm living in a dreamland! Tyrone came home on Wed. evening for R&R! Everything has been so very perfect.

Today we took the kids to the fair, and it could not have been more magical. Shiloh, being tall as she is, was just tall enough to ride on everything but the REALLY scary ones. We were a little surprised to find that both Gabe and Shiloh were utterly fearless and just laughed and laughed the higher or faster a ride went. Kaleb is a bit more reserved, which he comes by honestly. His mother is not a fan of higher or faster rides!

I was perfectly content to wear the baby, and sit with whoever was not going on the current ride, taking pictures, and thoroughly enjoying how happy my whole family was! Emmeline slept a good bit, and it was so easy to take little breaks in the shade with her, discreetly nursing, while big kids rode something with Daddy. The frequent breaks kept her happy and really made the whole thing very relaxed. She LOVED watching all the people and lights from the safety of the sling or our arms, you would never imagine it would be so easy to take a 6 month old to the fair!

some gave all

Our squadron has lost 2 more brave soldiers and had 6 more injuries. One of those killed had a wife and son. I cannot tell you how indescribably heartbroken I am for these families. If you could find a moment to pray for them, I would be grateful. We have faith but are scared. I will put up something more in a few days when it has been made official, as of now we are not to give names.

There is a little boy who will never see his daddy again in this life because he was brave enough to protect us all. I received this phone call while in the yard watching my own boys play Indians with their new bows and arrows. A was with me...I got the call before she did. I relayed the news, and she stared at me with a quivering lip while I cried standing there, staring back at her. This is so hard.

our summer is filled with

Watermelon...

Bubbles...

Sisters...

Brothers...

Sisters AND brothers...

Ice cream from the ice cream truck...

Smiles...

Good-tired-ness...

Dinner outside...

And lots of fun. We heart summer!

the 4th

A and I had one of our famous cookouts today. Both of our husbands are deployed. Together, actually, they see each other on a daily basis. So, it is nice for us to get our kids together and do things like this. It was pretty basic, cheeseburgers, hot dogs, chips, juice, ice cream sandwiches! We both have a bunch of kids, though, so when the two of us get together, there are 7 munchkins! Instant party!

A's son Brandon was soooo tired that he fell asleep on Kaleb!

And Emmeline was SUCH a happy girl the whole time!

Happy 4th, everyone! And thank you to all of our service members that keep our country safe, and especially my very own soldier!

6 months {e}

This is a day late, but we have been busy, very very busy!

So, Emmeline is 6 months old! She hasn't been in to her check up yet, so I will update with her weight and height after that.

As I posted a few days ago, Emme is eating real food now. We "have" carrots, sweet potatoes, and bananas so far. Next up are apples! This has cut down her nursing some, which makes me feel like I have a little bit of freedom back! We are still nursing and are doing wonderful, I'm so excited.

We still don't sleep through the night, but 2 out of the last 3 nights we have slept from about midnight until 5am, so it's a step in the right direction! Emmeline has ditched the swaddle, though! I wasn't sure she ever would, but, just like that, she was done! In fact, it was the night that she turned 5 months, we dropped it and never looked back! She continues to enjoy the sling, though, and so do I!

Emme is still wearing size 2 diapers and is now in her size 3-6 month clothes. She still has plenty of room around, but not height wise, in her 0-3 month clothes. She is sitting up better everyday, and has even started getting her knees pulled up underneath her. She is also big on grabbing and playing! Oh, and laughing! EVERYTHING is funny to this little girl!

And there's the 6 month Emmeline Lily update, one day late!

gabe's birthday

Gabe wants to wait for a coming event to celebrate his birthday, but I didn't want to let the day pass without making it special for our wild man! So we started the day by sleeping in a bit, and then we headed to McDonalds. We had Happy Meals (big treat!) and then the kids played at the Play Place for a while. Then we headed to Walmart so that Gabe could pick out what kind of cake he wanted. He wanted the vanilla/chocolate marbled cake. With chocolate frosting. And his name on it. And lots of sprinkles. And soccer balls.

Sooo.....



Wish granted! We played outside with Heather and her kids for a couple of hours, and then it was time for dinner and festivities!

We ate dinner that Gabe picked (chicken nuggets and french fries) and then had cake and presents. Gabe will get his big present from us later, but he did get a new Power Rangers movie and I thought he was going to explode he was so happy!

Gabe loved his card from Grandmother and Grandfather and was soooo excited to get his gift card....he can't wait to spend it next week!

Chocolate mustache

Gabe had no idea, but after dinner, I had one more surprise for him! We went to the drive in movie theater and watched Toy Story 3! It was a lot of fun and everyone was happy and exhausted!

6!

Today our Gabe Gabe is 6! I cannot believe how much he has changed and grown this year! He amazes me with his energy and his curiosity and his deep feelings! Such an honor to be the parents of this boy. He is fearless and lives with passion for everything he does. He can read now, was in the top reading group in his class!

Gabe has matured so much this year! He makes us laugh and makes us think with his unique perspective on the world. He motivates us all to keep up and not be lazy! :) He is still a cuddle bug and a sweet soul. Happy birthday, Gabriel Joseph!

Tomorrow I will entertain you with stories of how we celebrated...Gabe has a surprise coming tonight that he doesn't know about yet!!!