My little dance star

Lauren started dance lessons at the Morton Center in town. She is in the Creative Movement class and loves it! The first day, she was really excited,but didn't know what to expect. The second time, she did great! Today, she was a little shy and wouldn't do what her teacher asked her to. She has an amazing teacher who tries to get the girls to participate! They get to dance with different things like wooden sticks and ribbons. It's really nice to have something just for her that will hopefully boost her confidence and strengthen her legs at the same time!

Dylan and Ethan were feeling left out and wanted in on the fun!What a cute little dancer!

18 Months already?

Ethan just turned 18 months old! I can hardly believe that my baby is now a little boy! Here are his stats:

Height: 32 inches 50th percentile
Weight:25 pounds 50th percentile
Head Circumference: 49.2 cm. 90th percentile

He is growing up too fast! He keeps up with Dylan and Lauren around the house. He loves to wrestle with everyone. If you lay on the floor, he will come jump on top of you! He likes to say "momma" to everyone and when he wakes up in the morning. He loves to eat, although he started getting picky. He started biting if he gets upset or doesn't get what he wants. Dylan and Lauren know to watch out for him, but poor Jack is getting the brunt of it. We use his pacifier to keep the biting at bay. He doesn't like to be cuddled at night, he just wants to lay down with his blanket in one arm and his bear in the other. It's really cute, although I love cuddling! He is starting to communicate more and understand what we are saying. He says 'un-huh' for yes or 'un-un' for no. I love his blonde, curly locks! I think they are adorable and everyone tells me they love them too! He is his own person and I love seeing him grow each and every day!

September fun

Time is going by way too fast! Last weekend, Ricky had to work, so the kids and I headed to Indy to the Hoosier Outdoor Experience. My parents met us there with my 2 nephews. The kids had a blast doing all of the activities, and we enjoyed ourselves, too! The best part of the day, everything was free! I didn't spend a dime the entire time! (We did buy lunch at McDonald's before we got there.) What a great way to spend a fall day!Dylan got to learn how to lasso a bull.He shot a bow and arrow.Ethan loved riding the pony.Lauren did it all by herself!( If you know her, this is a huge accomplishment!)Dylan enjoyed riding the pony, too!Dylan and Lauren got to ride these cool motorcycles with training wheels on them! They had a blast!DylanLauren... I was even more surprised when she actually got on! She took her helmet off while waiting for her turn, and I thought she was done! She put the helmet back on and had a blast!

Ethan got to sit on one while we waited! He LOVED it and I'm sure next year he will be riding one of them!


This weekend, we got to go to the Feast of the Hunter's Moon. This is Ricky's favorite event each year, so we won't miss it unless something urgent comes up! We went with Ricky's parents and his nephew. The weather was great, minus a few sprinkles here and there, and the food was amazing! After the feast, we headed home to relax for a little. Lauren got to go to Ricky's parents for a sleepover, and the boys and I headed to Chuck E Cheese to meet my sister and family. We celebrated Landen's 5th birthday and the boys had a blast! We then had Landen spend the night here since we were headed down to my sister's house for dinner the next day. We had a busy, fun weekend but they always seem to go by too fast!!The only picture I got at the feast! We were too busy eating all the yummy food!
My sister and her boyfriend's kids, my brother's girlfriend's daughter, and my kiddos! They get along great and had a great weekend!

August Catch-up

Since I didn't get done with the blog before it got to September, here is my catch-up on the fun things we did! (Sorry in advance for the picture overload!)
On August 5th, we met my mom, aunt, cousins, and their kids at the Children's Museum in Indy. We had a big group, but it was so much fun! They kids (and adults) had fun!

They liked the Dora and Diego exhibit!
Lauren had fun dressing up and walking down the runway!
I think Dylan enjoyed the Barbies a little too much!
Ethan wasn't too impressed!
He was a happy camper after his little nap that got him through the day!


Overall, it was a busy, but fun day. When you have 7 kids and 5 adults, it can get a little crazy!

On August 18th, we headed to Indy to the State Fair! It is our family tradition and we love going every year! It was way HOT this year, but we still managed to have fun! My parents and brother joined us for the fun!

Sibling love!
Lauren loved feeding the goats!
I love Ethan's expression in this one! He had so much fun!
The kids had fun 'driving' the tractors. Dylan always had to buckle his seat-belt when he got on them. I guess I have trained him well!
Ethan wanted a turn, too!
Dylan was too big to ride these little tractors this year, sorry bud! Lauren liked the pink one!
We got to eat all of the yummy fair food, corn on the cob, gyros, fried Twinkies (actually so good that we ended up getting another one!), fried veggies, cheese sticks, kettle corn, funnel cake, to name a few! I think the food makes the whole trip worth it!

Dylan enjoying the nice weather in the back yard with his friend from school, Emily.
Enjoying the HOT weather we had! It was 90 degrees at the end of August! Who would have thought! That's Indiana weather for you!
Ethan didn't mind the hot weather! He loves to be outside! He is my little escape artist. He is always trying to get out the door. Every morning when Jack gets here, he tries to make a break for it! Silly boy! Where do you think you are going?

On August 24th, I came up with the great idea to make and can salsa. Ricky's mom came over and helped me make the salsa. After tasting it while it was cooking, I was a little concerned that it was too tomatoey. I put some in the fridge and tried it the next day and boy is it good! Ricky said that it tastes like Don Pablos salsa! Yeah! I made something good and I have 8 jars of it!
On August 27th, the kids and I headed to my parent's house to can peaches with my mom. I don't have a canner, yet, and I'm still learning how to do it! I have to say that I do like canning and it gives me a great sense of accomplishment. We bought 2 bushels, which is 96 pounds of peaches. We made 40 quarts of peaches in one day! We kept some of the peaches out to eat, and I made lots of things with them! I made 4 batches of peach muffins, peach cobbler, peach pie, peach milkshakes, peach bread, peach smooties, and just peaches! They were so yummy!
Lauren decided that she doesn't want to sleep in her bed anymore. She fell asleep at the top of the stairs the other day. Good thing she didn't roll any or she could have gone down the stairs! She wakes up and wants to sleep in our bed or on the couch. I don't let her sleep with us, but she has been sleeping on the 'brown couch' in our bedroom. Silly girl!
My boys just chillin'! They can be so cute sometimes!

As you can tell from the picture overload, we had a busy month! I think that's how my life is going to be for a while. Lauren is picking up dance lessons starting Monday, so instead of calming down, we are gearing up! With Ricky in school this semester (and graduating in December), it is going to be a busy couple of months! Bring on the crazy! (I hope I'm ready for it!)

Sick week

I guess it wasn't a fluke that Dylan got sick. Wednesday morning, Ethan thought he needed to join in the fun and threw up on my foot. So gross! He wasn't acting abnormal until he woke up from his nap and just wanted to cuddle. I think he had a little fever, but was otherwise ok. Then on Thursday afternoon, Lauren got sick too. This is not fun. They just got sick once and that's it. Ricky is not feeling good today. I guess it's just going around.

We have been keeping busy around here. With Dylan in school everyday, Ricky in school on Tuesday and Thursday, and Lauren in school on Thursday, it makes busy weeks! Luckily a family from church moved into our neighborhood and we can carpool for picking up Dylan from school. It has been so nice to not have to drive to school every day! We are switching off weeks, and it's going great!

I signed Lauren up for a study at Purdue, so we head over there twice a week for that. She really enjoys it and I feel like they are 'teaching' her as they do the studies. She likes getting a free toy at the end. The boys do great in the waiting room playing with toys while she is in the study. It is a lot of running around, but nice to have something to do.

Labor Day fun

For Labor Day we thought it would be fun to visit our friends up in Chicago and have a cookout. What better way to celebrate the holiday than a good old BBQ? We headed out right after church and spent the afternoon hanging out. My friend just happened to be making some homemade bread, and I brought some homemade jelly for her. It was the best combination ever! Sunday was great fun. The kids ran around outside and we got to chat. Dylan and Lauren got to sleep with the girls upstairs and were so excited. They were chatting and staying up way too late, but we thought it was ok for one night. Dylan got up and said that his tummy hurt, so I just told him to get a drink and go back to bed. I figured it was because he was up too late and just really tired. Found out a few hours later that he was sick. We had to move him downstairs with us and clean up a fun mess in the middle of the night. Thanks to my friend for helping out and not getting sick, too! He was acting fine all day, and then all of a sudden got sick. So random. No one else had any signs of it, so we figured it was just a fluke.

Monday, Dylan was fine and so my friend and I headed over to IKEA. I love that store! I HAD to get a dresser for Lauren since I sold the changer in the garage sale this summer. I am excited to get it put together and in her room! We chilled the rest of the day and cooked out again for dinner. We had a great time and enjoyed the great company! Thanks again for hosting us and putting up with a sick kid!

Lauren's first day of Joyschool

Today was a busy day! Lauren had her first day of Joy-school. It seems so unreal that she's old enough for it already! It also seems like just yesterday that Dylan was starting Joy-school with his little friends! Lauren is all grown up and here is your proof! Silly shot!Ethan felt left out of the photo shoot!She was so excited to wear her Tinkerbell backpack to school.
After Joy-school and lunch, Lauren and Dylan have an art class by a friend from church. She does an amazing job working with the kids and I know my kids have a blast! It makes a busy day with everything going on! That's just how my life is some days! Busy, busy, busy!