Caleb's Birthday/ Bonfire

We had a bonfire on Monday and invited several friends over to celebrate Caleb's birthday and our anniversary (the two are only a few days apart). We had a wonderful time! So, here are a few pictures, although they are out of order again. :)


Abbie stuffing her face with a cupcake.
Mmmm, yummy!

Caleb putting candles on his birthday (cup)cake!

His helmet that he got with his new bike!

Caleb and his new bike from Papa and Gramma Johnson! He loves it!

Rich giving Caleb and Emma rides on the 4-wheeler.

"Just five more rides Mom! Just five more!"

The guys, gathered round the bonfire, so proud of themselves!

The bonfire!

Tim preparing the bonfire for us!

Opening presents by the campfire.

A bobcat from Papa and Gramma Frey!!! Whoo-hoo!! He loves bobcats!

Hmmm, what did Uncle Tim and Annabel get Caleb?

A remote control truck! Wow!

More presents! This is a dumptruck from mom and dad.

Trying out the new remote truck!

Rich and Mike trying to get the dumptruck out of the package. It was actually screwed into the cardboard!

Bonfire!

Mike is always so safety cautious!

How many people roast a marshmellow like this? Ha ha!! Only my husband!

July is a busy month!

Well, the new walkway is almost done! We just have a bit of landscaping left and then it will be complete! Mike has done such an amazing job on this project and I am so proud of him for putting himself out there and attempting something he's never done before! With my great design skills (ha ha!) and his amazing ability to read my mind and put it together, we have almost completed our first really big project together. Thank the Lord for His grace towards us and keeping us safe while we did this. Believe me, we would not have won any safety awards! :)
Mike planted our really cool trees this morning. I love these things!

We are going to fill in the space between house and walkway with decorative stone, flowers and plants. It should be pretty if it comes out looking like I am picturing it in my head!

One more shot...

We had a campfire and roasted hot dogs and marshmellows for lunch today with the kids. Emma, Eli, and Ezra are all clustered together under the shade umbrella and Caleb is in the striped chair. Ya'll should know which one is Mike...

Caleb is becoming an expert marshmellow roaster!

Here's Eli showing me his half-eaten marshmellow.

All the kids joining in on the fun!

A garden spider Mike found in our day lilly this morning. Ewww..... thank goodness for frogs and other things that eat bugs and spiders! I DID think that its web was cool though!

I babysat some friends' kids last week and this is what my lunch table looked like.

And here we have movie time..... they were all very good.

Caleb and Abbie LOVE the pool and have been in almost every day since we put it up!

4th of July 2009

Fireworks. Totally awesome!
Mike and the kids in awe.

Tim and Annabel, our bestest friends.

Cheeeeese!

Playing with fire. Pyromaniacs!!

Our view from the river.

Abs

Annabel and Caleb

Before the fireworks, we went out for pizza. Cheese!

The boys! You can tell they were enjoying the meal!

Projects around the house

Its not finished!!! Ha ha! So dont think that we do our projects hillbilly style or anything! Mike has been working hard to get some stuff done around our house. We needed a lean-to built on our shed, so he has started on that. And our walkway to our front door has always been a problem, so we are finally getting that fixed too! Next we have a retaining wall to build and then graveling the driveway... again. So here are just a few pictures of the projects.

Elevated walkway. This is what we accomplished yesterday, and then we ran out of daylight.
Beginning of the framing.

Demolition! My favorite part!!!

Abbie eating cheerios. Thought I'd throw a picture of one of my kids in here! Ha ha!

Caleb in the bobcat with Brother Heady, ready to grate the driveway!

Framing the lean-to on the shed.

Time up north visiting family!

The kids and I flew up to WI to see family a few weeks ago! We were able to be there for Brittany's graduation party, visited the zoo, Bay Beach, friends and family, shopping, birthdays, and a million other things!! We had such a wonderful time! After spending a few days with my parents, Heidi and the kids and I drove over to see Mike's family in MN! Dave and Annie (Mike's older brother and his wife) had just had their 3rd baby boy, so got to see him- so precious!! We spent some time with the family, enjoyed some great outdoor activities and headed back to WI to catch our flight back to TN. It was so wonderful to visit and see everyone, but it is SO good to be home. God is amazingly wonderful- He kept us safe and allowed everything to go smoothly. Praise Him!!! Thanks to all our family for your prayers and all the wonderful things you did for us while we were there!!




Heidi showing Abbie how to be gentle with the puppy. She loved the puppy!!
Roasting marshmellows for Smores!

Yummy food guys!! Good job cooking your hot dogs!

The boys eating their hot dogs at the Point.

Smile Heidi and Abbie!

Caleb taking a ride on the tube!!

Loading up, moving out!

The "Paparrazi!" This is the coolest inflatable water thingy ever!!

Abbie at the Point.

At the Point in MN. Ryan and Caleb in the water waiting to go tubing.

Goofy boys!!! Micah is such a ham! Caleb is ooohing, and Ryan is distracted. I love boys! No fake pictures of them!!

Ryan and Abbie chillin' in the lake near Dave and Annie's house in MN.

Caleb showing off his water skills. He was totally into the water- diving head first into it!!

Caleb is in the hat and Ryan is in the blue/orange shorts. Strange kid in the middle.

Love the water!

Look what I can do with my ears~Im plugging them so I can't heeeaaarr youuuuu!

Enough pictures already Mom!!

Caleb turned into a penguin! We went to the zoo while we were there- the kids loved all the neat animals!

Abs loved the turtle!

Papa and Gramma, enjoying the fun with the grandkids!

Caleb and Abbie loved the water! So much sand and water- what more could you ask for?

Awwww. Our little cutie on the beach at Lake Michigan.

Happy Birthday Seth!

Seth enjoyed teasing Abbie with his birthday cake! She thought it was hilarious!

Uncle Seth and Abbie hanging out!

Strawberry picking! He had a blast and ate more than he picked!

Ready to go for a ride on the mower with Papa!

Smile! We had a great time!!!