More than 6 months later... and still not all that much to say!

Alright that's a 100% bona fide fib if I do say so myself! We had an absolutely WONDERFUL summer! We managed to get our camper out a total of 50 days! It really is our home away from home and as the seasons start to turn colder, I have to admit I'm more than a wee sad and a bit wistful that another entire warm season is gone. It seems the years seem to fly by with more speed the older you get, and I do remember always hearing that... I'm just not happy to find out it's true!

Cameron and Kaden started 3rd grade in the fall. This year they have gotten involved with karate and are beginning to get involved with church, something I've felt was missing in all of our lives for quite some time now. They have such funny things to say as their conversation has become more mature.

Cole turned 3 in August and has embraced his inner terrorist. He's quite an attitude some days! He is incredibly resistant to potty training despite Mom and Dad's great interest in the matter. All Cole's friends of the same age and younger are completely potty trained and we are still wearing diapers all day long. He often adamantly refuses to go in the potty chair and I guess you really can't force the issue?? He's adorable though and keeps us on our toes and remains the snuggliest little guy around. Given the opportunity, he still readily jumps in bed and assaults (I mean, snuggles?) us both all night.

AAAAAAnnnndddd we're expecting child number 4 (4th and final that is) the end of April! We're very excited but Mom is a little nervous at the prospect of going from 3 to 4. It really changes a lot of things... like our ability to all ride in a non-third row vehicle together! We've started renovating our house more in preparation for another member. Yes we will find out the sex of the baby in December, yes this is our last one, yes we're excited, yes we'll be fine with a 4th boy, yes we would love to have a girl as well but won't be disappointed either way, and yes we were trying! That should answer the most common questions you get in early pregnancy! The twins are excited but are adament that it MUST be a sister as they have plenty of brothers already. Cole seems very interested and has been talking to Mom's belly as soon as we gave him the news (it felt a little awkward knowing that for the first 2 months he was talking to my jelly roll instead of a baby bump... but hey! I'm sure the message traveled!)

We had family photos done in August and here's our favorites... went very well and minimally stressful with our new favorite photographer Dani Stanley.

I'm going to be better.. I promise...

I've said it before, I'll say it again... I'm really an aweful blogger. It's just so easy to get caught up in life and not take the time to sit and share my wonderfully exciting (ha!) insight into our world! However, I'm going to try to be better!

Cole is hilarious... I love this age so much! The way he says things just cracks us up. "Have it" comes out as "Habit" and "Love You" is "Lubyew." He has a long mop of red hair that I still struggle with cutting... such sweet soft baby curls! He roars all the time (which sounds more like he has a hairball) and that is his standard greeting for strangers and friends alike. He has been known to scare other children by incessantly roaring at them! He LOVES dinosaurs, any toy that has a dinosaur, any movie that has dinosaurs, any food that may have dinosaurs on the box, ... etc... you get the idea. Dino fanatic! Mom keeps a handful of plastic dinosaurs in her purse for outings that get hairy.

Cameron and Kaden are anxious to be done with second grade as they've struggled quite a bit with their teacher. Call it a personality conflict or a mean ol' bitty with a bad attitude... either way it has made for a difficult year. I think (hope rather) ultimately that they have learned a bit about dealing with conflict. They are just as sick of winter as all of the rest of us, they've been asking to ride their bikes since January despite the large amounts of snow piled up "we won't fall in the snow Mom, it'll be fine." They are reading above their grade level and Mom is so proud of them! They have been planning their 8th birthday party that isn't until the end of May since... well last May so I guess Mom had better get on board and figure out the details of the festivities. We took a trip to the Wisconsin Dells last September to the Great Wolf Lodge and they seem dead set on making a birthday return trip!

Andrew continues working hard in Denison managing the Hy Vee pharmacy. He brought his store ranking from bottom of the pile to 2nd for all of Hy Vee!

Mom decided grad school wasn't the right plan as she doesn't REALLY know what she wants to do when she grows up or if she's already doing it? Instead, she's planning to sit for boards in July to be an IBCLC (international board certified lactation consultant!) She has a real passion for it and some of her most rewarding days at work involve helping Moms have real success breastfeeding. It's a good fit for her so that's the main thing she's focusing on for now. Maybe there will be a revisit to grad school later on but right now just isn't the time.

We've been thinking long and hard about having another baby. Dad is ready whenever.. of course. Mom however really struggles with the idea of having another one now that Cole is fairly easy to travel with and do exciting things with not to mention Mom and Dad have been really enjoying doing some adult traveling without kiddos also. They have a trip planned to St Lucia in June and we certainly don't want to be pregnant at that time. We also have no idea what next fall and winter will bring or where we will even be. Our house is still listed on the market and though the prospect of it selling this summer looks bleak, we would really like to not be in transit while pregnant. AAhhh.. the things to consider.

For now, we're just enjoying our 5 person family and anticipating the coming camping season. Hit us up if you'd like to go camping as we're always looking for company! The more the merrier!

More Pictures

Ready for the Camping Season

Well we purchased a new camper and are ready to go camping this year. Here are a few pictures of the new one.