flashbacks...

This is our family in April 2006.

We still lived in Maine at the time and because there was probably 15 feet of snow on the ground at this time (slight exaggeration), our church Easter Egg Hunt/outreach event was held indoors! This was after the festivities during clean-up. Nate obviously had been running around and working off some energy, and he had just shoved a piece of candy in his mouth!!! By the way, I was about 3 months pregnant with Caden at this time!

Also, 10 years ago today was Mike and I's first date! I'm totally the type to remember things like this! We have never really talked about it or celebrated it, but since it is the 10th, I decided to do something to remember the event...

On our first date, he took me to a place in Moscow, Idaho, called Winger's. Upon the arrival of our server, Mike promptly ordered Buffalo Chicken Wings, not knowing that I didn't really eat chicken off the bone (I don't mind it so much now). He eventually figured it out as I was trying to cut the chicken off the bone with a fork and knife...then it was FUNNY!!!

this was just a couple of weeks later...we look SO young!

So today, I asked if we could go eat lunch at Chili's (this was un-budgeted, so I said it could come out of my grocery budget) after church (it was an awesome Easter service). As we were walking to our table, he decided to go to the bathroom. Our server came while Mike was gone, so I ordered Buffalo Chicken Wings. When the server brought us the wings, Mike was surprised and we talked about our first date! I told the boys how much I really, really, really liked their dad all those years ago!!

Fun times!

Flashback Friday...Maine Memories

This month marks 2 years since we left Maine. It's hard to believe it's been 2 years! Here are some random pics from Maine...

The huge moving truck in front of our house (and the two houses on either side...it was a LONG truck!) (2/22/07)

me and Sue at my going away party; a bittersweet night (2/1/07)

my boys with Cameron and Colby, Nate's best little buddies (1/31/07)

me with my awesome more-than-just-coffee friends, Jen, Lisa, and Shannon (check out Lisa's awesome blog here) I miss these girls and our Friday morning coffee! (1/31/07)

Mike and me looking for a Christmas tree (11/26/05)
(it sure doesn't look like this in OK)

Lilian, me, Angela (5/12/05)

Jordan, Ian, JonJon, and Nate...my kids LOVE these kids... looking for a Christmas tree, this time with NO snow :) (11/24/06)

JonJon with Nate (summer 2004)

Flashback Friday

In a few weeks, Mike and I will celebrate our 9th wedding anniversary! I decided that for Flashback Friday this month, I will post some of our wedding pictures!

me with my dad (I really like this picture!)

Julie, Feed, and Matt...they played/sang in the wedding

the bridesmaids...Ginger, Heather, Shemaiah, Rachel, Erin, and Holly

with Mike's parents, Bob and Lawanda

Flashback Friday (and today)

Pumpkin Patch visits over the years

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

Flashback Friday

In less than one week, my little Caden will be turning 2-years-old! I just can't believe it! For Flashback Friday, here are a whole bunch of pictures taken in October 2006, in the couple of weeks before he was born. We lived in Maine at that time, so Pumpkin Patches and Apple Orchards were plentiful!! I miss Maine autumns!

Our family of 5...yes, that is me with blond hair!! I was blond my whole life until a year ago!

One of my all-time favorite pictures of Ian

Kyle always loves picking apples!! He enjoys eating them, too!

Here is Nate, showing me one of his finds!


Nate, me, and Ian at a Pumpkin Patch! Kyle was at preschool.

Ian is finding his pumpkin


And here I am, the night before Caden was born...almost 2 years ago...in my house with the awesomely painted walls!

Flashback Friday

This morning at breakfast we were talking about our favorite memories. Nate says one of his was holding Kyle when Kyle was a baby. I'm thinking that he probably doesn't actually remember this (Nate was about 17 months old in this picture), but that he remembers the picture!! It's a great picture either way!!

Here is Nate, 2-years-old, holding Ian

Nate, 4-years-old, holding Caden

Kyle, 3-years-old, holding Caden

Ian, 18-months-old, holding, actually clinging to, Caden

What sweet blessings my boys are...really!!

Flashback Friday

My father-in-law has been visiting us this week, and we have had a great time! The boys sure love him!! He really blessed us this week by helping Mike stain our fence, which was quite a project!! Here is a picture of them bleaching and scrubbing the yucky, gray fence so they could actually stain it. It was a very DIRTY job!! They are working left to right...
Here is Grandpa Bob reading to the boys...
And, since it is Flashback Friday, here is a picture of Bob holding Nathanael in the hospital on February 25, 2002. He was there for the long haul (my labor lasted 30 hours); I'm pretty sure Bob stayed the night in the waiting room. Nate finally made his debut at 7am....
It has been a great visit!

Flashback Friday

These pictures were taken in September 2003. I think Kyle is just a couple of months old in the pictures, and Nate is about 18 months old.

Kyle was seriously all lips as a baby!

Handsome boys!

Wow! Where does the time go??

Flashback Friday

Easter 1983?
Margo, Keith, Bill

Flashback Friday

Since I posted newborn pictures of the boys last week, I decided to post newborn pictures of Mike and me. Of course, I don't have any really early pictures of Mike; I'll have to talk to his mom about that! The top one is the one taken in the hospital of me and the bottom one is Mike.
So, which of our blessings look like us?? What do you think?? Everyone thinks that Kyle looks so much like Mike, but Kyle looks nothing like Mike did as a baby...funny!

Flashback Friday-5 years ago

I am probably committing Flashback Friday suicide and I will never live this down, but oh well, this is the time in my life that is really on my mind right now! We had JUST moved to Maine and I looked like this:
Yes, I know. I WAS HUGE!! Even my nose gained weight! I gained more weight with Kyle than I did with the other three combined! No, not really. I just gained tons! I still can't believe that we moved to Maine when I only had 4 weeks left of my pregnancy. The moving truck came and my mom and I were buried under boxes. It was in the upper 90s that summer and we didn't have an air-conditioner. And I was HOT!!
Then, within a few days of the above picture. Our family became this:
This picture was taken the first time that 16-month-old Nathanael met Kyle. He didn't know what to think!
The next few months were so hard. I remember that my 25th birthday, August 25, was a really hard, almost depressing birthday. I don't even remember now what was so hard about it; I just remember crying! I really, really can't believe that was 5 years ago. Wow!
By Christmas, our family looked like this!

What a crazy, but sweet time in my life. God has done so much in our lives in the past five years. Praise Him for His faithfulness and provision and awesomeness and love and kindness on and on! Praise Him!

Flashback Friday

My super friend did this last week, so I thought I would join in this fun bloggy thing! Also, since many of my readers haven't really known me for that long, I will be able to share a little of my past (most of it with blond hair!)

I thought my first Flashback Friday should be some pictures of Mike and me while we were engaged. This first one was taken at Multnomah Falls in Oregon in April of 1999, right around the time when we realized we were each others' "one". It is SUCH a beautiful place. Yes, we look young! (You can click on the pictures to make them bigger!)

This next picture is taken on the Clearwater River in Idaho. Mike grew up in Kooskia, an itty bitty town of 600 people, on this river. The picture of us isn't very clear, but the scenery is awesome. Mike took me on a picnic and drive this day in May 1999, the day before I was moving back to Oklahoma for the summer. At this point, we knew we were getting married, we just didn't know when, where, or where we would live or anything. I had gone out to Idaho for only a semester and then met Mike. Anyway, it's a long story, but I ended up moving out there for real that August and then we got married in November. This is about 2 hours from where we lived in Moscow, Idaho. Mike actually used a timed camera to take this picture. He sat it on a rock and then jumped out to the rock where I am standing. I thought for sure he was going to fall into the river!

These next two pictures are from our engagement pictures. They were taken in September 1999 by Mike's best friend David.


I can't believe that this year we have been married 9 years...wow! Who would have thought that God would bring two people together from two tiny towns in two totally different parts of the country! I praise God that He did! I am so blessed by my husband! This is the verse that was on the front of our wedding program:
Ephesians 3:20-21
Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.