Two precious boys

2009

2010-04-17T15:45:00.000-04:00

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-22T14:06:00.002-05:00

Nathan's school Christmas party

This is at Austin's Christmas program. He is the sheep on the far right side.

Nathan at his Christmas program. He is in the red sweater in the front.

Fall & Halloween

2009-11-03T13:05:00.003-05:00

We've had a busy fall! Greg's sister and family came for a visit and we had a blast going to the Air Zoo and pumpkin patch with them. Nathan is doing very well in kindergarten. He has been home for the last week sick with the flu, but the rest of us have not gotten it so far. The boys had a great time on Halloween and Austin LOVED saying trick or treat and getting candy! He was very upset when kids came to our house and took the candy! He wanted to be the one receiving it!

Catching up

2009-09-09T15:56:00.005-04:00

Nathan's First Day of Kindergarten

Nathan was very good and had a great day. I think I was more worried and nervous than he was! He was in a great mood when he got out of school. He said he had a blast.

These last few pictures are from the vacation we took in July. We went to Mackinaw Island and had a great time there. The boys really enjoyed playing and seeing new sights.

Chicago & trip to Iowa

2009-07-22T20:39:00.003-04:00

We had cheesecake at the top of the Hancock!

We visited our family in Iowa and took a couple of days away from the kids over the 4th of July. We took the boys to the John Deere Pavilion while we were there. The boys loved climbing on the tractors. We had such a nice time visiting our family. I wish we could take time off like that more often!

Nathan's Preschool Graduation

2009-06-10T21:10:00.004-04:00

Here he is walking in.

Saying the pledges.

Singing and being so good!
Little brother was restless by the end.
Nathan had his preschool graduation last week. We had a lot of fun watching him perform. I really missed having family around to come see him, but he had a great night. We are registered and ready for kindergarten starting in September.

Nathan's Birthday

2009-06-10T20:53:00.003-04:00

The boys playing with their new water & sand table.

We had a very nice birthday party for Nathan. He had several friends over and he really enjoyed himself. The last two nights he's thanked God for such a nice party and it's been nearly 3 weeks! It is hard to believe my oldest is 5, but I'm enjoying him so much. He is a sweet boy and I'm grateful God gave him to us. The pictures after the party are from a recent Sunday. The boys looked sweet in their outfits and we tried to get some pictures of them. We bought the boys a swingset for their birthdays and we've been working to make a nice play area for them. I'll post some better pictures when we get it finished.

Austin's Birthday and Mother's Day

2009-06-03T15:09:00.004-04:00

Austin had a great time with the money Grandpa gave him.
Greg's parents went with us to Greenfield village to see Thomas. Unfortunately, the camera was set to black and white and I cut Thomas' head off!

Austin turned 2 on May 4. We celebrated a couple days before with his grandparents.

He LOVED his cake. It was gone within a minute or two.

His favorite present- flags. They were destroyed and gone within a couple of days.

These very wiggly boys didn't want their pictures taken! Maybe by next Mother's Day they will sit up and take a good picture with me!

Easter and IHC

2009-04-24T13:16:00.004-04:00

Austin was very sick over Easter. I managed to get a few good pictures of him the day before.

Doesn't he look like a little man now?

Austin is in his jammies because he wasn't feeling well for Easter. He wanted to be in the pictures with his brother!

The week after Easter was IHC. We went and spent an afternoon and evening there. Nathan was very excited to get to see his Great Grandma. She had never met Austin. The next day we went to the Creation musuem with Greg's sister and family.

This has been a busy month for us! I had my last two wisdom teeth pulled yesterday, and am very glad that is over with. We are looking forward to May. Nathan, Austin and I have birthdays to celebrate!

2009-04-03T18:37:00.005-04:00

Austin figured out how to stick his flag in the doorknob!

Greg went to San Francisco for a business trip this week. His Mom, sister, and her kids came to visit while he was gone. It was so nice to have them here, and we had a great time. Nathan and Austin loved having the family. Today Nathan told me we wanted more family time!

Chicago trip

2009-03-27T13:13:00.003-04:00

Our tiny little guy.

I love how he's holding on to me here!
The whole crew - it was very dark and hard to get a picture here.

Uncle Darrell and Nathan

Grandma with Austin

Austin trying to get to his favorite thing - flags!

Nathan and Grandma

Our kids are blessed to have the best grandparents around! We had a fun day with them and Greg's brother last Saturday when we met up in Chicago. We spent several hours at the Science & Industry and then went downtown for some pizza. The boys had a great time and really enjoyed seeing their grandparents again. Austin got very upset every time we had to split up from them. Nathan was completely excited and bouncing around as we walked to our car to go home. He loves "tops of buildings" (skyscrapers). He says that they are his work. Maybe someday he'll end up working in one!

My mischevious boy

2009-03-25T13:36:00.004-04:00

New Camera!

2009-03-24T08:14:00.006-04:00

Austin has been saying "I don't know" when you ask him questions! He has a hilarious personality!

We bought a new Canon Rebel and we are still trying to learn how to use it. Greg is the photographer of the family, and he is trying all kinds of things with it. These are some pictures we've taken. On Saturday we went to Chicago, and I will try to post some pictures soon.

Howdy!

2009-03-11T15:10:00.007-04:00

Western Day at preschool.

Notice the hair sticking straight up.. Nothing we can do about it.. .

and it matches his personality too. :-)
Getting into no no's..

Trying to get good pictures of wiggly boys is so hard!

We're happy to close to spring here in Michigan. We've finally had some nicer temperatures and the snow is gone. The most exciting thing that has happened to us recently is my car dying at Meijer this week. I had turned the key on far enough so Austin could hear some songs playing while we waited on Greg and Nathan to grab some groceries. When Greg came to start the car, it wouldn't start! We walked around Meijer for awhile hoping it would charge back up. When it didn't, Greg went to ask a guy for help. The guy turned out to be very drunk, but he was able to pull his van over to give us a jump. We made it to Auto Zone and bought a new battery. I am so grateful that happened with Greg around, and not with just me and the kids!

Austin is learning lots of new words. He says just about anything, but I really love it when he says "help" and "please". He is so funny and full of energy. Greg and I look at each and shake our heads at him. We really can't believe how opposite of his brother he his.

The latest from our crazy life..

2009-02-19T21:52:00.006-05:00

Here are pictures of my sweet boys from the last week . Nathan helped me decorate a cake for Valentines Day. In the last few weeks Austin had an ear infection, Nathan & I got a virus, and then this week Austin hurt his foot. I ended up taking him to the ER to make sure it wasn't broken. He refused to walk on it the night he got hurt, and he is still limping around 3 days later! It is pitiful but cute. It has not slowed him down at all from his mission of destruction. I have to watch him all of the time right now! Greg and I had a nice date the night before Valentines' Day. Greg also had his birthday this week and we made a special dinner for him. Somewhere in between all of that we've both had some very busy days at work! We lost all of our snow, and had some really warm days. We got some more snow today and I think that is going to continue for the next few days. I'm ready for spring!

2009-02-02T13:47:00.004-05:00

I love this picture!

Here is Austin sound asleep. Notice the foot between the rails.

Sometimes he starts kicking that wall in the night and our bedroom is on the other side!

It is so hard to get pictures of Austin right now! He hates the camera and wiggles away just in time. I took these when the boys were dresesd for church yesterday.

We've had a good couple of weeks. Greg got to enjoy some Florida weather for a few days, and we were so happy when he came back home. Austin had a fever when Greg arrived home, and it lasted for several days. He had an ear infection and is on antibiotics for it. He has been incredibly grouchy for a couple of days. I'm hoping that he is feeling better soon!

Austin

2009-01-18T14:06:00.003-05:00

Here's my sweet little guy. He was very happy to be outside playing. His Daddy and brother were busy shoveling. He can barely walk with all of his snow gear on! He is at such an age of sweetness and naughtiness. I'm dreading him getting bigger, but at the same time I'm ready for him to learn a few lessons!

January...

2009-01-17T14:57:00.006-05:00

Life goes by too fast and I am not keeping my blog up to date. We are having a very frigid and snowy January. It has snowed more days than not. Last night we visited our friends, Carl & Jill, in Marshall. On the way home the temperature ranged from -9 to -12. We were running out of gas, and I don't think I've ever been so happy to fill up! We've looked at houses and thought about listing ours. For now we've decided to wait a little while longer. That could change if the right house came along and if some other things worked out. Greg is working many hours as usual, and he is going to Florida next week. I'm a little envious, and I hope that the weather is really warm while he is there. Austin is going through a very, very busy stage. I'm busy just making sure he is safe and keeping the house repaired from the damage! He is saying new words almost every day now. Here are some pictures I took today:

Austin discovering play dough.

Nathan is enjoying playing games with Greg on the computer!

Christmas Part 2

2009-01-02T23:15:00.003-05:00

My mom with her four grandsons.

My brother is going to have another boy in March, and that will make a total of 5 grandsons!

Sweet Nathan. He is growing up too fast.

He and Austin both behaved like angels on the two twelve hour trips. I can't believe how good they were. Austin barely even whimpered during both trips.
This little guy's middle name should be mischievous! He delights in knocking over toys, tearing up things and just being naughty. Thank goodness he is as sweet as can be or we would be pulling our hair out! He gives so many hugs and kisses that it makes up for the trials. He's recently started calling flags boo-ba's. I have no idea where that came from, but every trip in the car is an exciting event for him. He's looking out the window to see where the next flag will appear. It is pretty hilarious. He calls his daddy Dee-da most of the time. It's going to be interesting to see what other words he invents.

Christmas Part 1

2009-01-02T21:53:00.003-05:00

We've had a great 2 weeks off. We travelled to Iowa and Alabama, and made it back to Michigan. The boys were really good in the car and did not get sick while we were gone. I'm very grateful for that! The first few pictures are when we opened presents at home. We rushed through our presents because we had to travel to Iowa that night. We had a very snowy December and we had to leave a day early to beat another storm.

Austin was completely uncooperative with getting his picture taken on Christmas day! He turned away or did something silly almost every time we took a picture!

Grandma McCormick reading to her youngest grandchildren.

We have a Winter Wonderland!

2008-12-09T12:37:00.003-05:00

We had a ton of snow over the weekend and I took some good pictures of the boys to send as our Christmas cards. The middle picture shows why we are not going to be sending out professional pictures at Christmas this year! Austin scratched his face up! I'm hoping we can get some family pictures made around the new year.

The last few weeks have been very busy with lots of fun activities. We enjoyed going back to Iowa for Thanksgiving and the boys had a great time playing at their Grandma's house. On Saturday we had a Christmas party for Greg's office. We enjoyed having a break from the boys and we drove home from the party in a blizzard!

We have two parties left. One for Greg's team this week, and my work party last. Then the last weekend before Christmas is our church program. After that we leave to go to Iowa and from there we are headed to Alabama! Makes me tired just writing about it all! I'm looking forward to lots of days off together with our families.

With the economy and the uncertainty in the world, the Reason for Christmas means more to me this year. I'm so glad for the hope that is found through the Baby that was born long ago!

Happy Thanksgiving

2008-11-25T21:16:00.003-05:00

Nathan made this hat at Awana Cubbies tonight. On the feathers they wrote what he was thankful for. On one of them, Jessebell is written. I guess they didn't figure out that he meant Jezebel. He has been listening to the Adventure's in Odyssey about Elijah and the fire coming down from Heaven. For some reason he is grateful for the wicked queen! Leave it to kids to like the bad guys (or in this case gals) in the story!

Election Day and Halloween

2008-11-05T14:53:00.003-05:00

I tried to teach Nathan about Election Day, and we made this flag cake to celebrate. Unfortunately, there ended up not being a reason to celebrate!

We have made it through all of Greg's trips for the year! My mom came for a few days last week and we had a nice time. Nathan was a brave Knight for Halloween, and he definitely gave more than he received for Halloween this year! He loves handing out candy. In the picture of Austin at the door, he was unhappy that he wasn't outside with us when I was taking Nathan's picture.

Catching up again...

2008-10-28T15:15:00.003-04:00

Michigan is beautiful in the fall.
Here is our little monkey!

Who could resist this little guy?

My mom is in town for a visit. Greg has had a lot of trips lately and he is in Germany this week. I am doing my best to relax! Relaxing is not something I do very well, but I'm trying to this week. Today I have really enjoyed spending time with Nathan. I took him to the dentist and was so proud of how good he was! He laid down, put on sunglasses, and did exactly what they told him! He had his first fluoride treatment and did great for that too. I am amazed at how much more grown up a 4 1/2 year old is than a 3 1/2. There are advantages to them getting older!

Austin is still talking a lot of climbing on everything. He has climbed up on my kitchen table twice already! I have to watch out for what he's going to get into next. His personality is sweet but very mischievious!

We are planning on attending some services at our church this weekend. Mark Cravens is coming for a weekend revival. I'm really looking forward to it. Nathan & Grandma Humphrey are staying home Friday night to hand out some candy. I will post pictures Nathan in his costume later this week.

Our trip to the pumpkin patch & cider mill

2008-10-13T14:16:00.009-04:00

Here is Austin's mischievous look.

All he wants to do these days is walk, walk, walk! I guess he's making up for lost time! The boys had a great time riding the "tractors".
Picking delicious Michigan Apples!

Life is still going at a hectic pace. Greg has had 2 trips in the last few weeks, and he has 3 more to come before November. He took a Friday off recently and we went to a cider mill and then to a pumpkin patch. Nathan & Austin had a great time playing there, and we both enjoyed watching them have a great time!

Austin came home with a note from daycare today that said he sang "E-I-E-I-O". He is starting to say more words than I can keep track of!

Last week, Greg's sister and her kids came for a visit. I had a project from my work that helped the kids earn some money. That kept us very busy. We took them out for pizza and to our Library. We really enjoyed having them here. It helped the time without Greg go a lot faster. I've discovered that having family around really helps ease the loneliness of a husband being away!

Here's some pictures!

2008-09-21T18:29:00.002-04:00

I haven't had too much to blog about lately. Greg took a trip to San Francisco a couple of weeks ago. He has several trips coming up in the next few weeks. Nathan has made the adjustment to going to preschool 3 mornings a week. Austin is starting to say a lot of words. If you say I love to him, he says "you". I will try to post a video clip I got of him saying that. Nathan is learning to play soccer, and he loves it! He also started back to his Cubbies class on Wednesday nights. I got to go to a chiropractic convention Friday and Saturday. It was nice to have several hours feeling like an adult again, and not just a mom! Our 11th anniversary is coming up this week. I'm not sure how we'll celebrate yet. The first presidential debate is that night, and neither of us want to miss that! Greg may take the day off, and that would be nice.

2008-09-07T19:53:00.002-04:00

Hi, everyone! We have been busy around here again. I haven't taken any pictures lately. We've had a couple of fun weekends with a church picnic last and a get together in Grand Rapids the weekend before. We are on a new schedule and Nathan is having 3 mornings of preschool per week. Austin goes during that time as well, and I try to get as much work done as possible! I'm not sure if we are going to keep this schedule up, but I'm going to give it a few weeks to see how it works. It has really messed Austin's naps up. Since he is still only 16 months, he really needs 2-3 hours of a nap in a day. I'm hoping the daycare will work with me and keep him awake until I get there and he can take a good nap at home then.

I'll try to post some new pictures in the next week or so! I'm loving the cooler temps. Michigan is a beautiful place to live, especially in the summer & fall.

A Day at the Beach

2008-08-22T13:32:00.005-04:00

Greg's brother Darrell came for a visit last weekend. We went to the beach Monday and had a great time. Austin wasn't too happy in the water, but he sure liked the sand! Nathan loved the water and the beach. The Metz boys from Grand Rapids met us there and I had a fun time shopping with their mom, Janis.

Big Truck Day

2008-08-22T13:27:00.002-04:00

Our library had a special day recently with snow plows, a fire truck and some other work vehicles. Nathan had a great time honking the horns on the snow plows. There was also a balloon guy there who made Nathan a pirate sword. Unfortunately, the sword popped soon after we got home. I think Nathan will be very careful when he gets a balloon like this again!

The latest about the boys....

2008-07-30T08:18:00.005-04:00

Austin is growing fast. He has 3 molars coming in and I'm expecting the 4th one to show up soon. He has quite the temper and we've been seeing more of it with him teething. He yells when his diaper is changed, when you lay him down in the tub, get him out of the tub, when you close a door he wants to go through and whenever he doesn't get his way! On the positive side, he can completely change to a smiling, happy baby the next second if you distract him. He has a very sweet personality. He is toddling around everywhere and often has a mischievous look on his face. He is saying uh oh and hi. Austin waves bye bye, claps to music, gives five and shakes hands. When I put him in his bed he will start sucking his thumb and grab the blanket that Great Grandma McCormick made him. I think it is his favorite now. He eats an amazing amount of food but still looks small. I've grown used to having a boy on the small side and have grown to like having my "baby" stay small for awhile.

Nathan is having a fun summer. He is biking a lot with his dad even though he has training wheels on. His naps are getting more infrequent. He is still working on his reading and doing well. I bought Hooked on Phonics for him (kindergarten level). I think he will be done and reading well by the time he starts school in a year. Nathan is going to VBS this week and seems to be loving it. He is very shy and withdrawn in new environments. I feel really bad to leave him. Today is the third day and he seems to be getting used to it. Greg bought Nathan a new train set with a table. Nathan has enjoyed building huge tracks all over the house! Austin loves to tear them up.

Greg is staying very busy with his job, and I've cut back the number of hours I'm working. It has been nice to do some scrapbooking again and to have time to clean the house. We are excited for Greg's sister and family to come visit next week. We are going to go to the beach and an Amish town.

I hope everyone's summer is going well!

Park Pictures

2008-07-29T21:03:00.004-04:00

We went to a park last Saturday and took a bunch of pictures. These are some of the best.

Zoo pictures

2008-07-16T10:03:00.002-04:00

We visited Iowa in June for a wedding. We took Nathan and his cousins to the zoo.

Recent pictures

2008-07-16T09:55:00.002-04:00

4th of July Parade

Austin is walking!

2008-07-02T21:47:00.003-04:00

He's walking - at almost 14 months. Man, did that make this mommy happy!

The boys had haircuts!

2008-06-22T21:31:00.003-04:00

You can kind of see our new carpet. This is the shortest Austin's hair has ever been. I think he was born with it longer!

2008-06-18T13:50:00.002-04:00

June is flying by. We are enjoying the warmer weather. However, it is only in the low sixties and pretty cool today! Austin is still being a stinker and not walking yet! He is getting an interesting personality. He gets a very mischievous look on his face a lot. Nathan is learning to read a few words and I'm getting to see how hard it might be to get this little guy to focus! He has SO much energy. Last night he was so wound up at 9:15 that I took him on a bike ride. He pedaled hard, and I had to run to keep up. The ride wore him out.

Monday we went to Shipshewanna, IN with some friends from our church, my friend Jessica and her little girl, Hannah. The town is Amish with a lot of neat places to shop. We went to some craft stores, ate at a nice restaurant, and went to a bulk food store Here is a picture of all three kids sleeping on the way home. They were pretty cute!

We have a lot coming up in the next few weeks. Two weddings, Greg has a trip or two, the 4th of July, and some camps we hope to attend. I hope you all are having a great beginning to your summer as well!

Catching up..

2008-06-06T07:19:00.004-04:00

Here are some pictures from our trip to Iowa and Chicago in May:

We had a birtday party after we arrived. Nathan wanted a Thomas cake again!
Nathan with his favorite friends - his cousins!
Playing the new Leapster that we gave him for his birthday.

The next day, Greg and I left the kids and went to Chicago!

I love this picture. One sock on and one sock off and a big wave.

We have had a busy month. Greg and I enjoyed a couple days without the kids. We walked for miles around Chicago. We shopped a lot, ate at some really nice restaurants, and went to Navy Pier. That was the first time we have taken a vacation without our kids since Nathan was born 4 years ago! It was definitely time. I'm very grateful to my mother-in-law and Trisha who helped out with the kids. The kids were just fine without us.

It was hard to come back home because we had such a nice time in Chicago and with our family in Iowa. I took the kids to the doctor on Tuesday for their yearly checkup. Austin is a little peanut at 18 1/2 pounds! He is decently long, at 29 1/2 inches. Nathan is 37 pounds and 42 1/24 inches. He is a tall boy. I would not want to repeat this visit. They gave Austin 4 shots, and Nathan 2. Nathan had not had shots in a couple of years and he was really scared. We got through it somehow and they seem to be doing fine. The nurse asked Nathan what he would do if a ball rolled into the road. He said he would call his mama! I was happy that he got that one right!

Nathan's birthday is tomorrow!

2008-05-21T22:25:00.003-04:00

We are leaving for vacation tomorrow! This month has flown by, and a lot has happened. I wanted to post a couple of pics of my birthday boy. He is a sweet, loving boy. I am so thankful for him. The four years have flown by.

Nathan is giving us some hilarious smiles these days!

A better smile

Here he is - a few hours old

One week old

Austin's 1st Birthday

2008-05-05T14:18:00.003-04:00

The birthday boy!

Austin is 1! We cancelled the party we were going to have, and are planning to have one in a few weeks when we go to Iowa. We will combine the boy's birthday parties this year. I bought a cake and he was cute. He had more fun playing with it than eating it! Austin took a couple of steps this week, clapped and started flying around holding on to his walker. He also caught a nasty cough & cold. He ran a fever for a few days. The poor little guy was sick for his birthday! He is cutting 2 teeth and has been feeling miserable. He shares his birthday with my brother, Allen, and he was sick yesterday too!

Thomas the Train

2008-05-05T14:08:00.003-04:00

Nathan has loved Thomas the train for a long time. My mom was here for a week and we drove to Detroit to take a ride on Thomas. It was quite an eventful trip. Right after the ride it started raining and we were not able to go to many of the activities. Nathan was happy in spite of that, and I bought him a Thomas blanket and a stuffed Thomas. He now sleeps with his Thomas tent beside his bed, under a Thomas blanket, and snuggling with a stuffed Thomas!

A Haircut - Finally!

2008-04-29T22:49:00.002-04:00

Austin got his first hair cut today. He will be 1 on Sunday, and his Daddy was determined to make that first year without a cut. It was hard on Mommy to see his cute little wisps disappear. It is amazing how "the baby" is so different than the first child. With Nathan I am always excited for the next stage. With Austin I am clinging to each stage. He is a precious baby.

Here are his haircut pics:

Before the haircut

The "what is that lady about to do" look.

He didn't like the zzzz thing. (That is what Nathan calls the razor)

Finished and not very happy.

Brittany tagged me..

2008-04-18T07:08:00.004-04:00

What was I doing 10 years ago?
I had been married just a few months and was working a temp job.

Things on my To Do list today:
I have a doctor's appointment.
We are having our house measured for new carpet.
I'm going to Lowe's again to decide which carpet to buy!
Maybe a load of laundry if I get inspired..

Snacks I enjoy:
Graham crackers with peanut butter, fruit, cookies

If I were a billionaire, I'd...
Move somewhere warmer!
Give a lot of it to church and other organizations.
Go on a lot of vacations!
Buy a really nice house on a few acres.
Adopt a couple of kids from Asia or Europe.

My worst habits:
I think the worst one right now is putting off getting dressed for the day while I try to find time to work out! I'm really working on that one!
Worrying and thinking too much.
Trying to accomplish too much in the day and not spending as much time as I think I should with the kids.

Places I have lived:
Adamsville, Alabama
Davenport, Iowa
Portage, Michigan

Jobs I have held:
I had a temp job for 6 months at a grocery store warehouse in Illinois.
Worked as an assistant for 5 years at a chiropractic office in Illinois.
I am presently the office manager for another chiropractor and I'm almost to my fifth anniversary for her.
Mom to 2 boys. (the most tiring and rewarding job of all)

People I would like to tag:
Jill & Julie

Catching up.

2008-04-16T13:44:00.003-04:00

I have not been keeping my blog up! I'm finding the days are flying by with 2 boys to chase! The weather has finally cooperated and today is sunny and in the 60's. I'm starting to see the daffodils bloom. In a few weeks we will have tulips everywhere. Our city loves to plant them like crazy. Maybe I will have some time to get pictures.

Austin is crawling everywhere. He finally decided that crawling was easier than scooting. He had his first drink of real milk yesterday. He is not crazy about the sippy cup yet, and that is my fault because I haven't taken the time to introduce it before now. I'm so grateful that we are giving him cow's milk without any issues so far! He went back on regular milk formula in February and has been doing fine.

Nathan is growing fast again. We checked out Hooked on Phonics Pre-K from our Library and he is learning his letters and sounds quickly. It is a lot of fun to see him sounding them out. He is very serious about it.

I am planning on going back to work 2 days a week by June. It is getting hard to work from home. Austin is and into everything! He is climbing stairs and needs constant monitoring. He is going through another fussy faze. I keep looking for another tooth but haven't found it yet!

We have a lot coming up in the next month. Greg is headed back to Germany, I have a conference to go to, and we are hoping to take a trip without the boys for our 10th anniversary. (Out 10th anniversary was last year.) Summer is going to be here soon!

Here are some pictures:

Austin crawling over his brother!

Another pianist in the family?? We'll see!

First wagon ride together.
Nathan had his face painted at daycare last week
Austin loves standing and watching his brother play.

Nathan & Austin at 11 months

2008-04-16T13:36:00.002-04:00

Nathan -11 months
Austin - 11 months

Happy Spring!

2008-03-28T08:26:00.004-04:00

I thought I'd share a spring morning in Michigan with all of my southern friends and family!!

More snow....

Easter

2008-03-24T10:11:00.003-04:00

We went to Iowa for Easter. We stayed busy and the time there went fast. Nathan had a great time playing with his cousins. Both boys are worn out from all of the activity now that we are home.

Nathan coloring Easter eggs.
I'm dreaming of a white.....Easter??? Come on weather! It is time for spring!

We couldn't get a decent picture of the two boys. Austin was way too tired and wiggly.

This is the closest to a "perfect" picture that I managed to get with 5 busy children!

2008-03-24T10:03:00.005-04:00

These pictures show what Austin is up to these days:

Crawling and scooting
Getting into everything!

He is walking around furniture and standing alone for a few seconds.
He is very happy and sweet!

This little guy is truly precious. Even now that he is getting busier and definitely a lot harder to keep up with, he has a sweet personality.

Pictures from the last few days

2008-03-12T13:28:00.003-04:00

Austin's hair is very long now! He will get his first haircut when he turns 1.

We met Jill & Preston at a mall today. Preston and Nathan had a great time playing.

Nathan trying to make a big smile to show how happy he is!
Austin's two new top teeth!

Austin loves Elmo!

2008-02-28T19:51:00.002-05:00

This little guy had a great time playing with Elmo a few days ago.

Austin is going to be 10 months in a few more days. It is hard to believe my baby is almost 1. He is saying mama a lot right now. I don't think he knows what it means yet, but it is very sweet to hear! He is scooting everywhere and getting into a lot of things. He has knocked a lamp off a table, and pulled another table on top of him! I'm constantly checking to make sure he is ok. He will scoot out of his room and into Nathan's room. The other day I found him in there while Nathan was still taking his nap. He knows right where to go for Nathan's toys.

We have been staying really busy as usual. I have been feeling like life is coming together the last few weeks. I've learned that it takes several months to get used to a new baby. We are supposed to get more snow tonight. I'm not getting my hopes up for spring to come yet.

Grandma & Grandpa came for a visit

2008-02-18T11:19:00.004-05:00

Austin is still scooting around. He is trying to crawl, but hasn't quite accomplished that yet.
Nathan found out that Grandpa is very ticklish!

The boys are growing fast. We have been staying so busy that I've neglected to update my blog! Greg's parents came last week and we had a great time with them. We went to the Gerald Ford museum in Grand Rapids. We had a lot of fun. Fortunately, the bad weather stayed away until they left. We had icy conditions again for Sunday. Our church did not not have services at all the Sunday before, and yesterday we only had the night service. This winter has been extreme. We have had tons of snow and ice. There have been several times that we've even had rain and thunder! Once we get through March the nasty weather will go away and spring will hopefully come.

We're still here!

2008-01-30T10:13:00.000-05:00

Thomas is Nathan's "special friend" right now.

Austin is enjoying his increased mobility.

Nathan is learning how to hold his violin.

It has been a few days since I posted! We have been staying busy. Greg & I have enjoyed following the presidential race. Austin started saying mama on Friday, scooting around on Saturday, & saying dada on Monday. It seems like he is hitting several milestones at once! Last night he was rolling or scooting for whatever he wanted. Our temperature dropped from 40 to 0 last night and the roads are pretty messy from what I hear. I'm planning on staying in and enjoying the day with the kids.

Austin's newest accomplishment

2008-01-16T07:11:00.000-05:00

It takes a lot of concentration to stand up!

He loves his new skill, and he even let go and kept his balance a couple of times.

Here he is still wet from his bath.

I love this little guy so much!

2008-01-15T13:49:00.000-05:00

These pictures are from Sunday. We were getting some snow Sunday morning, so Nathan, Austin, and I went to Hannah's dedication. Greg was out of town, and I did not want to drive the seventy miles to our church with the nasty road conditions.

Austin pulled himself up this morning! I was so excited! He is eating a ton of milk now that he is drinking the new formula. He is growing and changing so fast.

Staying busy..

2008-01-12T09:42:00.000-05:00

We have been staying very busy. We took Austin in for a checkup this week and the doctor was pleased with how he is doing. We are keeping him on the hypoallergenic formula for now. He is smiling and happy most of the time again. It is such a relief to see him returning to normal. I nervously took him back to daycare this week. We are not sure if he picked up the virus there and then his stomach refused to tolerate milk, or if he developed an intolerance without the virus. I guess that is one thing we will never know for sure. What we do know is that he is much better and that is all that really matters!

Austin is now eight months old. He can pick up food with his thumb and first finger, but he is not sure what to do with it yet. He ate a cracker this week. He has not started crawling yet. We can put him down on his hands and knees and he will rock back and forth before lurching to the floor. Austin still doesn't say very much. When he does it is at full volume! He makes a lot of g and k sounds.

Nathan is growing up day by day. He is looking older and his language is changing. He is a great helper with household chores. He can be very polite some days, saying thank you, thank you, for the smallest things!

I found a website through another blog that has helped me organize my life better. It is flylady.net. I would recommend it for anyone who is very busy and needs some guidance with priorities. Making a few changes have helped me feel like I'm staying on top of the household chores.

I hope everyone is having a good January! I will post some new pictures soon.

Our Winter Wonderland

2008-01-04T12:03:00.000-05:00

Cold weather doesn't stop Nathan!

We have a ton of snow! I'm not sure how much is outside, but there is well over a foot.

Austin

2008-01-04T11:52:00.000-05:00

We took Austin to the Doctor on Wednesday, and he thinks that he might have an sinus infection. He also thought that the virus has made his stomach not able to tolerate milk or soy milk for awhile. We have been giving him a very expensive kind of formula and so far so good. He got up with a fever and even more congested today, so we had him checked again. I guess he has a respiratory infection on top of everything else! I just want him to get well! It has been 3 long weeks.

Christmas pictures & Happy New Year!

2007-12-31T21:35:00.000-05:00

Nathan opening gifts at our house.
Austin liked the bow best of all!
Nathan and Lindsay playing at Grandma's house.
Getting 5 kids to all look at the camera and smile is next to impossible!
Sweet Nathan on Christmas day.

Austin loves playing with balls. He will laugh very hard when you roll them to him. That is drool on his sweater, and his second tooth has appeared. We really enjoyed Christmas. We had a lot of family time and it was very relaxing. Since we have been home, I've been so busy with my Mom that I haven't kept my blog updated!

Austin has started having problems keeping food down again. I'm going to take him to the doctor on Wednesday and hopefully get some answers. It is very distressing to see your baby having a hard time like this. I am not sure if he had a virus two weeks ago and then something went wrong in his tummy, or if he has had something else going on all along. I spoke with the nurse that I've been updating today and she said she thought he either has a valve not working properly, reflux, or something is wrong in his tummy. I wish I could just fix him!

We are getting a snowstorm tonight. 6-12 inches is forecasted. My mom is really hoping that we get a lot. Greg went skiing with his brother and a friend tonight, and he should be here by midnight. It does not seem possible that 2007 is over already. Happy New Years!

Merry Christmas!

2007-12-25T17:34:00.000-05:00

For unto you is born this day a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord.

We have had a very nice, peaceful day. I'm so thankful that we were able to be together and that Austin is finally on the mend. Have a very Merry Christmas!

Sickness...

2007-12-18T10:06:00.000-05:00

We are in the midst of some kind of gastrointestinal virus. Austin has been sick since Friday. It has seemed like he is never going to get better. Nathan never got sick like this as a baby. Greg went out of town and got sick there. I've lost my voice and am not feeling great. I'm hoping we can all recover soon and make it back to Greg's family Saturday for Christmas.

We did buy a 2005 Saturn Vue on Saturday. Greg brought it home for a test drive and I dropped him and it back off at the dealership and came right back home. I think I'm really going to like it, but since I've been stuck in the house since Saturday I can't say for sure!

I hope you all are having a better week before Christmas! It is hard to get too excited about it right now.

Austin's little friends

2007-12-14T08:53:00.000-05:00

Austin is very happy to see his friends!

Austin, Hannah and Layla

Whe I was pregnant with Austin, I had several friends who were pregnant at the same time. These little ones were all born in May. Last night we got together, and the babies are growing fast! It is so nice to know babies the same age as Austin.

2007-12-12T13:27:00.000-05:00

Nathan - December 2004Austin - December 2007
A lot of people say the boys look alike and sometimes they do.

In these pictures they definitely look different.

We are having a very busy week. My car had some things go wrong that made it not worth the money to fix. It was towed away to car heaven (better known as a junkyard) today. :-( I have been very busy researching vehicles. A lot to do and this is the holiday season as well! Oh well, this too will pass.

We had 3 Christmas parties last week. They all were fun but it is nice to have that past. This weekend is our church program and then it will be all downhill from there. I hope all of you are having a wonderful Christmas season!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas....

2007-12-05T10:31:00.000-05:00

This is what we woke up to today - our first decent snowfall!

My friend Brittany asked to see some pictures of my decorations so here they are:

I'll be lucky if our tree survives Nathan this year! Our Nativity scene that my boss gave me a few years ago..
This is the centerpiece on my coffee table.

Decorating for Christmas

2007-12-03T13:49:00.000-05:00

We put our tree up on Saturday. It was a new experience for me having a 3 1/2 year old wanting to help! We managed to get it up and Daddy got some cute pictures of the boys.

Little Austin

2007-11-30T13:52:00.001-05:00

I took the two boys to get their pictures made today. That was quite an experience! I can't believe how much harder it is to have two kids in a picture than just one. Nathan didn't want to smile and Austin just wanted to play with everything! After 45 minutes of struggling with both of the boys, I think we endend up with a few good pictures.

Austin's croup is almost gone. What a relief! His breathing was so bad that we ended up in the ER Sunday night.

Austin is always cute and sweet, but today he is completely adorable. I've been holding and enjoying him this afternoon. His first tooth is growing in nicely. I think the next one will break through soon. He is determined to suck his thumb. He still takes his paci, but the thumb seems to be his favorite.

Greg is working late tonight, and I am going to try to get some some things accomplished. This week has been really busy with getting caught up with the housework (I'm beginning to think that's not going to happen for a few years. :-), taking care of a sick baby, and also working at my job.

We have a winter storm for tomorrow night and we might get a few inches of snow! We have not had a real snowfall this year. That is unusual for this area. Last year we had a decent snowstorm before Halloween!

Pictures from Thanksgiving

2007-11-27T20:16:00.000-05:00

Time for dinner!
Austin got lots of attention while we were away.
Nathan had a blast helping Grandma decorate Grandpa's tree.

Home again

2007-11-25T20:37:00.000-05:00

We had a great time in Iowa. The time away went so fast. I can't believe we are back home and ready to get back to normal again!

I am typing this with little Austin in my lap. He came down with croup yesterday, and it has been rough. He is breathing hard with each breath and his cough sounds like a bark. We left to come home as soon as we could get packed up this morning. Right before we left Nathan slammed his finger in the door. It must have hurt pretty bad because he cried for a long time.

Austin tries to cry but only a squeak comes out. He has been talking and smiling more tonight. I hope the worst is over. I found his first tooth Friday. That was exciting. I love all of the stages that babies go through. The only thing I don't love is their sicknesses! I had no idea that it would be so rough to see them suffer.

I will try to post some pictures from our trip tomorrow.

Daddy's little helper

2007-11-19T13:31:00.000-05:00

I looked outside Saturday and saw this little guy helping his dad with the leaves. This is a big job I usually help with every year. It was sweet to see Nathan working with his dad and he really loved helping out.

Austin is loving his exersaucer, and today he figured out how to chew on the fish!

These kids...

2007-11-16T13:09:00.000-05:00

This put a smile on my face today. After I put Austin down for a nap, Nathan and I sat at our table and worked on drawing some letters. He loves to sit in my lap and draw. Before I put him down for his nap, I asked him what his dad's name was. He said "Gregory Vernon." (He knows that very well because that's what I call Greg when he is teasing me.) Then I asked Nathan what Mommy's name was. He said "Ellen Machine." My middle name is Michelle, and I guess that sounds like machine to him! There's something about a 3-year old little guy trying to say everything that is so cute.

Austin slept very well last night, and was in a great mood this morning. He kept "talking" in a very loud voice. Nathan made him laugh and laugh at lunchtime. I just love seeing the two of them playing together.

After my post about warmer weather on Wednesday, we got our first real snowflakes of the season on Thursday! Some snow stuck to the ground for an hour or so. Michigan weather can be very interesting.

We are headed back to the doctor's office again today. I have been there with the kids every week for the last three weeks! It is not my favorite place to go, but it looks like Austin has thrush in his mouth. I showed it to our doctor last week, and he was not concerned about it yet because it had not spread to his cheeks. Now it is all over his cheeks and not improving after a week.

We are planning on leaving for Iowa Tuesday afternoon. Nathan is very excited about going to see our family there. He would love to go right now! I'm ready for some days to relax. I always enjoy getting away because it helps me get my focus back on the kids.

Warmer weather

2007-11-14T12:51:00.000-05:00

The weather has been nice the last two days. We went on a walk yesterday and today I took some pictures of Austin in our pile of leaves.

Sweet boys

2007-11-12T22:08:00.001-05:00

Nathan adores his baby brother. I love to see them playing together. Nathan gives Austin hugs and kisses all of the time. I wondered how he would do with a brother after being an only child for three years. I don't think Nathan even remembers not having a little brother around.

We have had a busy week. Austin's doctor's appointment went well. He is 15.3 pounds and 25 3/4 inches long. He is in the 10-20% percentile. This week he has been sleeping and eating much better. He has been rolling over more and is really starting to use his hands. I'm having to watch out when I'm holding him while I eat. He will grab my plate so fast! He likes to bang his right hand on the table or a toy. He is also noticing his toys a lot more and wanting to play with them.

Last weekend we went to our church on Friday and Saturday night to hear Rev. Larry Petit preach. Nathan started calling him our "new preacher". He really enjoyed the services and seemed to be listening very well. One time during a sermon, Rev. Petit asked a question and Nathan said "Yes" very loud!

Pictures of Austin's first 6 months

2007-11-12T21:47:00.000-05:00

One day One month Two months Three Months
Four months Five months
Six months

Happy 6 months, little Austin!

2007-11-05T20:04:00.001-05:00

This little guy so sweet. I love it when I go to get him out bed because he will smile and start kicking with excitement. Austin is content to be held and loves to snuggle. He likes to sit in his Daddy's lap and watch him play the piano. He is beginning to hold the bottle on his own for a few seconds. He is not excited about food yet and continues to make disgusted faces. He has tried almost all of the 1st baby foods and his favorites have been sweet potatoes and bananas.

I left Greg with both boys for 24 hours this past weekend. It was the first time I have ever been away for a night since Nathan was born. I went to a chiropractic conference with my boss. The time away was nice but I was glad to get back home to the boys. Austin did not sleep very well for his Dad. He has been getting up two times in the night. He had been doing so well, but the last few days he has really seemed off of his schedule. He's been chewing on his thumb and hand a lot. I'm hoping that it means he's cutting teeth and we will be back to normal soon!

Tomorrow we are going to the doctor for his six month appointment. We hope that he has gained enough weight and length this time to at least stay on the curve of his growth chart. At his four month appointment he measured small, and we are hoping that the doctor will be happy with his progress.

Vacation with Grandma

2007-11-01T17:07:00.001-04:00

While Greg was away on two business trips in October, we were able to spend two weeks with his family. Grandma, Trisha, Travis, Emily, and Lindsay all came to Michigan for a few days. We visited a pumpkin patch while they were here and the kids had a lot of fun. Then they took us back home to Iowa with them. We really enjoyed visiting the family. These pictures are from our time with them.

Nathan did not want to smile or look at the camera!

Austin at the pumpkin patch.

The kids loved picking apples.

Austin's first taste of cereal - it didn't go over very well!

Milk is sooo much better than this cereal stuff...

Austin's first bath sitting up at Grandma's house.

Halloween

2007-10-31T20:50:00.001-04:00

Nathan was very excited about Halloween.

Austin smiling even though he's sick.

I asked Nathan what his favorite part of Halloween was and he said, "Giving candy to the kids." He stood at the door calling for the kids to come to our house. He would say, "Trick or Treat." One time when he saw some kids coming he said, "Thanks." He really loved handing out the candy.

Pictures from last week.

2007-10-31T13:24:00.000-04:00

Nathan riding his tricycle

Austin sitting up

Austin and his friend Hannah

Holding hands at 6 months!

I didn't think I would ever do this....

2007-10-31T12:49:00.001-04:00

Blogging is not one thing I ever planned on doing.. But having family in a several states makes it seem like a good idea! You can come here to see what's going on in our lives, and hopefully I'll be able to figure out how to post some pictures.

Austin is going to be 6 months on Sunday, and Nathan is almost 3 1/2. Austin's baby days are going by so fast! He can sit up by himself now and he rolls from his tummy to his back sometimes. He is a very sweet and happy baby. Greg and I are amazed with how quiet he is. He cries so little that when he gets upset we hurry to figure out what is wrong. Nathan is growing a lot right now. He is talking a lot more "grown up" these days. He is at a really sweet age too. He is very loving and sweet to his baby brother, and he is a great helper.