OFF WE GO...

...To the land of CHEESE! See you all when we get back!

I've been TAGGED!

PICTURE TAG

The rules are.. you have to take 10 pictures of the following things, and it has to be right away, no straightening, cleaning or wiping your child's nose...so here goes..this is for you Colby!

1. The Fridge. (Can you tell we are leaving for vacation soon...it is pretty empty.)

2. The Kitchen Sink. (I am a little fanatical about the sink...I don't like dishes in it)

3. The Laundry Room. (not too bad huh? That's because I haven't started it yet this week.)
4. Favorite Room. Our family room. It's where we spend most of our time.
5. Favorite shoes. My Reef flip flops...I need some new ones, but they are so, so comfy.
6. The Closet. If you take the picture at the right angle it looks better especially since it is Dale's side. This is the only place in my house I really don't care to much about how clean or organized it is.
7. The Bathroom Toilet. This is the kids bathroom, which I have to clean almost daily, because BOYS are GROSS!
8. What are your Kids doing right now? Taylor playing school with the neighbor girls.Maddie taking a nap...oops she opened her eyes just as I took this picture, no worries she went right back to sleep!9. Self Portrait. I am not an artist!10. Dream Vacation. There are many places I dream about going someday, but there has always been something about Greece that I find so beautiful. I mean come on, wouldn't you love to be soaking in that beautiful water, over looking the Mediteranean Sea...maybe someday?!

I'm supposed to tag 5 people, but I want to invite everyone I know who has a blog to share in the joy of this half fun, half humiliating activity. So...Kendra, Kerri, Mrs. Morty, Scrappy, Kirstyn, and Sweetmom...YOU'RE IT!!!

cuTe KiddOs.

I don't have any fun, exciting thing to really talk about, we are just hanging out a lot at the pool and playing with friends... I can't believe how fast this summer is going! Only 2 more weeks and school starts for us. CRAZY. Taylor and Maddie helping their Dad clean out his trunk!

Taylor is all geared up in his Packer jersey playing a little football on the PS2.

(no comment on the "Favre" jersey , he has had that for awhile)

We are headed up the "MOTHER LAND" (that's what Dale calls it) this week for a 10 day trek which will include a trip to Lambeau Field and the Packer Pro-Shop...good times huh?! Can you tell I'm thrilled. I know I need to be supportive of my husband, and so I will go with a smile on my face:) knowing that part of our trip will include shopping in Chicago...that's what I'm talking about, and there better not be any complaints from the boys!!!

I decided it would be fun to try some velcro rollers in Maddie's hair on Sunday, at first she thought it was fun, and she loved making faces at herself in the mirror, but when Maddie is done with something she is done! She wanted them out! But I made her humor me a bit longer so I could get some pictures!

I probably won't have the chance to post at all while we are on our trip, but will I try to check in on everyone, if I get a chance.

Mamma Mia Anyone???

To all my local fellow bloggers...My Mom suggested having a "Girls night out" and going to see this movie. She and my sisters all went without me (only because we live 1000 miles away) and said it was a must see "girl movie." So...if any of you are interested let me know, but we are leaving Friday for Wisconsin, so it needs to be soon, or I guess I could wait until I get back too!

PaRTy TiMe!

Here are just a few of the pictures we got at the party, I think everyone had a great time...and thank goodness NOBODY got hurt! You always worry about that when you have about 15 kids swimming and running around!
Maddie loved her cake, all she could talk about was her BARBIE birthday cake! It was the first one I made...so it was a little lopsided, but who really cares she is only 3, right?!
These are some of our great friends that came to celebrate with us! Thank you, we had a great birthday party!!!

MADDIE is 3 toDaY!

HaPPy BirThDay "MaDDie caKeS!"

It is so fun to look back at pictures to see how fast they grow up. Maddie is such a little joy to have around...even though she is beginning to be a little stinker sometimes! We are celebrating her birthday tomorrow down at the neighborhood pool, we reserved the pool and clubhouse...so it's sure to be a hit! I'm sure we will do a recap on the party later. Today I will take her shopping (you gotta start 'em young) then to lunch, just Maddie and Mommy!!!

Lillian.

I don't really know where to begin with this post, but it is something I have had on my mind for awhile. I really wanted to do something on June 20, but I didn't, and I wish I would of. I am not good with words, but hope I can express my feelings the way that I want to.

This is Lilly, my niece. She was born June 20, 2003, she would of turned 5 this year. She is the daughter of my brother Aaron and his wife Jennifer. She died unexpectedly from a rare blood disease, that nobody knew she had until her sudden death April 1, 2004. The reason I wanted to share her with everyone, is because she is a very special part of our family, even though she isn't with us anymore. I think of her often, and I especially wonder how her parents cope with losing a child. I know so much of their strength comes from the knowledge we share of the gospel of Jesus Christ, that someday we will be with our loved ones again if we live worthy in this life.

This is one of the reasons Lilly is such a special part of our family. She is a reminder to us that in order to be able to really know her we need to be better people and live the gospel. I didn't have the opportunity to really know her because at the time I lived in another state, I'm sad about that now, but I know she was so loved by all who knew her. She gives me the desire to try harder each day to be a better person.

The reason this had been on my mind so much lately is I was reminded recently how quickly loved ones can be taken from us. (If you want to know why you can read on adailyscoop.blogspot.com) I was also reminded of what my brother and his wife might be going through. Last weekend, while at our family reunion, the "emotional break through" I was talking about in an earlier post, was that they were able to share with us some of the agony they are still feeling, that we as their family didn't understand, because we didn't loose our child. I can only hope that we understand a little better, and that we can share Lillian's life out loud rather then not talking about it.

Lillian was too perfect for this world, and I would only hope that we can all try a little harder to be better people. I love my family and I have a new appreciation for my brother and his wife, they are very blessed to have that perfect child.

I am so glad they named her Lilly, because we will always think of her when we see a lily.

wordLESS wednesday.

the REUNION.

We had such a great time at our family reunion. My sister in law Jennifer grew up on this ranch outside of Show Low, AZ. It was absolutely beautiful there. The kids had so much fun just exploring nature and playing with one another. There was so much for them to do...they had four wheelers, a REAL tree house, a golf cart to drive around, a rope swing, and so much more! There was even fun for the big boys...they would ride up to the hills and shoot guns, I know Dale loved that part. It has been a really long time since our family was able to bond like we did at this reunion. I'm so glad we were all able to be there together. We had a wonderful family meeting the last evening we were there, where we were able to express our gratitude for one another. We also had a break through that was very emotional for everyone in our family, I won't go into that right now, but I am grateful for everyone in our family and love each and every one of them. So enjoy just a FEW of the 500 pictures I took...and I'm not kidding, I really took over 500... Taylor and Maddie by the old barn
Mom and Dad
Jared, Dad, and Dale cleaning the guns.
This is Jac, my brother Aaron's son...is that not one of the cutest little boys you have ever seen?
Maddie connecting the raindrops.
My sister Jana and her 5 boys...Nick, Jana, Kaden, Jake, Josh, & Nate

Ridin' out into the sunset...Dale loved the four wheeling.

This is my youngest sister Kendra with her husband Marc, and her cute baby Casen.
My sister Sara and her boys...Kean, Aydan, hubby Eric, & Brennan.
My brother Aaron and his family...Jennifer, Jac, Autumn, & Aaron...they also have a daughter Lilly that passed away 4 years ago.

The whole family...It is next to impossible to get a good photo of 33 people!
Brennan, Taylor, & Aydan playing up in the tree house.
Dale with Taylor & Brennan going for another ride.
Taylor's little pet ladybug.
Taylor on the rope swing.

How many kids can you fit on a golf cart?? At least 10!

Above is my brother Jared with his brood...three of his little girls are triplets. Jennifer is his wife and her mother was so kind to allow our crazy big family to invade her home. The last picture is my youngest brother Brad, he is definitely a blessing to have around...he was diagnosed with bladder cancer at the age of 21, he is doing better but still struggles with his health due to the cancer.

This was a fun weekend packed with so many memories, thank goodness we had this chance to get together.

"SAY-SAY"

As Maddie is approaching 3 I have noticed a couple things that make me feel a little sad, one of those things I have really noticed in the last couple of days is, ever since she began talking she has called Taylor "SAY-SAY" with a cute little lisp. The last few days I have noticed she has been trying real hard to say "Taylor." Might I also add, Taylor WILL NOT let anybody else call him "SAY-SAY" he gets really mad if you call him that...only Maddie can call him by that name. I guess it is just sad my baby is growing up. Another observation I have made is she is developing quite the little attitude, which makes me sad, and mad...what is happening to my sweet baby girl? I am totally convinced it is the terrible 3's and not the terrible 2's! Oh well...I sure love her no matter how sassy she gets! I mean come on...don't you just want to grab those little cheeks and give her a big kiss...I know I do.