My Full Cup

It was a long trek from WI to OH but it was worth every long hot mile to be with my family.

Here we are going through Chicago. No offense to anyone who lives there but I am NOT a big fan of driving through this city. Although it is fun to look at it is NOT fun getting stuck in traffic every time we go there.

The only time the kids are allowed to play on their Dsi's is on long car trips. So they spend a lot of their time doing just that.

Waiting at a rest stop while I nursed Kaitlyn. This is what made our trip take 3 hours longer then it normally would. (I took the pic from out the front window of the van while I was nursing)

Sunset. We drove late into the night.

We did lots of fun things while we were there.

We played at a park that had a splash pad (I think that's what it's called). Claire and Gavyn (my sister's daughter) played in the water together.

James and his zest for life

You gotta love that face! :)

James and Gage running through the pad

This is pretty much what Kaitlyn did the whole time were were there. :)

Beautiful Anna

Okay so I threw this one in just to prove I was actually there. My sister Allie is sitting next to me.

My brother really wanted to take the kids fishing. This was their first time. My brother Matt enjoys fishing. Although he never really had much of a chance to fish because he spent the the whole time putting worms on hooks and helping all the kids.

Bill caught the first fish...which is really funny because he told us before we went out there that he used to go as a kid and NEVER caught anything. :)

The kids were very intrigued.

Uncle Matt helping James.

My beautiful 2 year old niece Gavyn.

Aunt Dana (my brother's wife) helping Claire.

Gage playing in the rocks.

James and his cousin Gage.

The boys. They have fun together. I think this is my favorite picture.

Uncle Matt also took us mini golfing. That was a big hit. Although some of the kiddos needed a little help.

And I had to throw this one in just because Bill makes me laugh.

Can't wait to do this again! I just wish we lived closer so we didn't have to wait so much time between seeing each other.

and all my time? The summer has just flown by for us. I thought for sure I would have more time to get on here then I have. I did have some spare time but I just chose to use it for other things. Documenting our summer just wasn't high up on the list. I mostly just wanted to chill with friends and family and snuggle my newborn. I have been busy and content with those things. Sometimes it's just better to live life then to write it all down. (gasp! can you believe I just said that?)

While the temperature says it is still summer the date would indicate that our summer {break} is just about over. After being gone all summer back home in WI we arrived at our temporary home (until December) early Monday morning. We had a wonderful summer being back in our home church visiting with everyone. Now it's back to the grind. We start school this coming Monday...ready or not! :) No, we really are looking forward to getting back into a routine and seeing what is in store for our family this semester.

Since I don't have time to give every detail of our summer I think I will briefly (and maybe randomly) summarize some thoughts and events:

~We spent a week visiting my family out east. What a blessing to be with my brother and sister and their families. The last time we saw each other was when my mom passed away, so it was so nice just to visit for fun.

~Traveling with a newborn is much harder then I thought. It took us 3 hours longer then it should have when we drove out east. And it was WICKED hot! And we don't have air conditioning. So, 11 hours in a car with no air AND a newborn...yeah! But it was totally worth it to see my family.

~We got stuck in Chicago (on out way back from PA) for 2 hours when we had been traveling all night. There was flooding in the city and they had shut down a main road. We had been planning to stop as soon as we got through the city so I could nurse Kaitlyn. We tried going through side streets (thankful for a GPS....although it doesn't warn you when going through bad parts...yikes!) and everything was backed up. I have never been more thankful for a breast pump. :) I ended up having to pump and give her a bottle because we couldn't stop. Thankfully she took the bottle because it was the first time.
̰
~We put over 3,000 miles on our van this summer! :)

~I didn't get as many books read this summer as I wanted.

~I got hooked on a few (dumb) T.V. shows during some of my late night feedings with Kaitlyn. I probably should have been reading instead.

~I got my hair cut...really short...after having a big argument (total misunderstanding between us, which was resolved quickly) with my husband. I regretted cutting it. I think the moral of the story for me was, never get your hair cut after an argument with your hubby. :) I am starting to like my hair now but it has taken me a few weeks. Maybe when/if I feel brave I will post a picture.

~We stayed in 3 different homes with 3 different families this summer which was a blessing, but at the same time was also stressful. I am so thankful for how God provided for us. I am also thankful to be back in our own space now. It was hard for me not to really have any alone/private time with my husband this summer...especially after having a baby.

~We saw God provide in amazing ways this summer! One way, (which may sound silly) was the amount of strawberries we had. Our kids LOVE strawberries. Well, for a few weeks there we had person after person bring strawberries to us. I just had to laugh and thank God for how He cares about even the little details. We had a feast of strawberries every day. We got to share with our kids how God cares about even little things, and how He delights in the details. What a good God we have because He certainly didn't have to do that for us and yet He did. :)

~We had to have our car fixed 2 times while back in WI. God provided every penny (like over $600) we needed through other people. The cool thing is, He provided it right before the car broke down. So we knew exactly what the money was supposed to be used for. :)

~I feel so blessed by our home church. Bill and I left there every Sunday just in awe at how good God is. When you can walk away every Sunday feeling encouraged in the Word and by other believers now that is a good thing!

~My friends threw me a beautiful baby shower after Kaitlyn's birth. I have so many diapers for her I won't need to buy any for a long time. :)

~The boys participated in t-ball this summer for the first time and LOVED it. Oh and Bill was the head coach of their team. Hee hee. I never thought he would do something like that, but he did a good job.

~Anna, Ryan, and James took swim lessons.

~I got to do a few photo sessions for friends this summer (but not as many as I had planned to or wanted to...there just wasn't time). I get nervous every time I take pictures for someone, so I spend time in prayer before each session. I want to be a blessing to others and I can't do that on my own. I LOVE taking pictures for other people, it gives me great joy.

~I am praying about taking that love of photographing others and turning it into something more. I have spent the last year and a half getting experience. I am scared and excited but mostly scared. I don't know if I am good enough to jump in and start a small (very very small on the side) business. I am seeking wisdom from the Lord before I make any final decisions.

~We started potty training Claire. It is going better then I thought. We are on day 4 now and she hasn't had any accidents in the last 2 days. She seems to have "got" it. She tells us when she needs to go. I am amazed. It would be so wonderful to only have 1 in diapers.

I am sure there are more things that I could include but I am going to wrap this up. Pictures from the summer coming soon.

Until later!