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This post is dedicated to my mom for sure.  Not only did she fill my entire yard with beautiful flowers for my birthday, she watched our boys throughout the entire weekend for us!  Adam and I were able to go to a movie and the Melting Pot one night and the next night, we took Jacob and Gavin to a Mariner's game.  Since it was a late game and Casey is pretty young still, he stayed home with Grammy.  :)

 Two very excited boys!!

 A quaint little cupcake shop in town had it's grand opening on my birthday, so we picked a few different flavors for everyone to try.

 Then we were on our way to the game...

 Not a bad view for ten dollar seats!

 Every time an Alaska plane flew overhead, the boys would shout, "Look!  It's Daddy's airplane!"

 My mom found this birthday package online where you get a tote bag with gift cards, a Mariner's hat and ball, and a message on the giant reader board!  Jacob was bursting at the seams waiting for it to appear, so I'm glad he only had to wait until the bottom of the second inning!  ;)

My Jakey has the best little heart!

 Gav really liked the peanuts and cracker jacks.  ;)

Did you know peanuts can double as binoculars? 

  Mommy's little photo shoot while Daddy was getting garlic fries.

 I think the theme was Jacob sticking his tongue out.  ;)

 Such a fun birthday weekend!  Thanks again mom for making it all possible.  :)

Mommy and Daddy quiz

On Gavin's last day of preschool, we were given a folder full of Gavin's art projects and pictures.  

My favorite though was the mommy and daddy quiz.

My Mom

What is your mom's name?    Kerri

What does she do?   She stays home and takes care of us.

How old is she?   32

What does Daddy call Mommy?   Honey

What is her favorite color?   Purple

What is her favorite food?   Broccoli

What is her favorite movie?   Toy Story 3

How many brothers and sisters does she have?  2 brothers

Where does she like to take you for fun?   The zoo

What is Mom's favorite household chore?  She likes to clean the bathroom.

My Dad

My dad is 38 years old.

I don't know how much he weighs and he is taller than my mom.

His hair is black and his eyes are blue.

My dad loves to relax by watching TV and he likes to wear shorts.

He loves to cook broccoli.

His favorite household chore is nothing.

His favorite TV show is Indiana Jones.

It makes Dad happy when we are going to the zoo.

When my dad goes shopping, he likes to buy tools.

If he could go on a trip, he would go to the beach and he would take us.

I really love it when my dad plays with me.

Mommy's thoughts...

Wow, he actually got our ages right??
I think he was talking about his favorite movie... and that he had two brothers
What is up with all the broccoli?
I don't really take him to the zoo that often
And since we are being honest, the zoo is definitely not what makes Adam the happiest  ;)
I don't like cleaning bathrooms for sure
Adam's hair isn't black
I would agree that Adam's favorite chore is nothing  ;)
I love that he said his daddy would go to the beach and he would take us
...and that his mommy's job is to stay home and take care of him.

This little guy cracks. me. up.

Saying goodbye to preschool

 Gavin had his preschool graduation this morning.  These big milestones really strike a cord for me.  Probably because he was practically still a baby on his first day two years ago.

In other words, he has spent almost half of his life here!  I've been there to see him make his first friends, go on his first field trips, celebrate his special days, get all dressed up for Christmas programs, Happy Birthday Jesus and Jesus is Alive parties... How can he be big enough for kindergarten already?   I think it's especially tough because all his friends are going separate ways now, to separate kindergartens.  And since I'm not a fan of change...

Anyway, here is my little guy with the Nemo fish he made for a camping theme this year.

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All the little fishies...

 Singing songs and signing the ABC's

 This is Gavin's best little friend. 

 They are pretty silly together.

But ohhh the love!

 Gavin's teachers

 Blue jello with whipped cream and swedish fish

Truly blessed to have met some lifelong friends along the way.  When two little boys get along so well and their mommies happen to immediately click too... it's the best!

Fun in the Sun

 My sister just moved so we drove over last weekend to check out her new place.  I brought a slip-n-slide and water blasters, the kids played in the fenced backyard, my sister and I sat in the sun with iced coffee... seriously perfect afternoon.

 They took the water blaster thing pretty seriously.

  I am so grateful for a ten year old niece who can fill up water balloons for everyone!

 These two were chasing each other with water balloons and blasters the entire time!

 

 Wait!  Time out!  Stop!  I surrender!

 Slippin' and slidin'

 What is a warm, sunny day without popsicles?

 So blessed to have best friends in their cousins!

Riding with Daddy

This daddy loves his boys.

And dirt bikes.  

He loves those too.

 He has taken all three boys on little dirt bike rides since they were little...
always dreaming of the day when they would be old enough to go riding alongside him. 

That day was today.

Jacob tried out the new dirt bike first and caught on super fast!

 Doesn't he look adorable all decked out?

 Gavin did pretty good for his first time too.

His daddy stayed right behind him though... just in case.

The best part about this dirt bike is that you can adjust the throttle for exactly how fast (or slow) you want them to go.  This makes it mommy approved.  ;)  I have to say, the look of pure joy on Adam's face as he taught his boys how to ride for the first time... was priceless.

One Less

I first heard this song at Creation last summer and remember thinking how powerful and inspiring it was. This was before we even knew we would be adopting.  Now, it has a whole new meaning and gives me goosebumps every time I hear it.


I got to meet Matthew West in person a few months ago.  My friend won two backstage tickets to meet him and asked me (or I might have begged ;) to go with her!  Not only did I get to shake his hand, but I got to hear One Less and many other amazing songs... live.  Such an unforgettable night.

Here is Matthew West's story behind the song.  (Also gives me goosebumps every time I hear it.  ;)

When you think about the fact that there are 147 million orphans in this world, adopting one doesn't seem like much.

But it's one less.

James 1:27  Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.