outdoor fun

we have been having the most gorgeous weather this weekend. so today, after we got home from church and lunch, the boys took their naps and got all rested up for some play time outside.

little man hanging out by the tunnel.....


and looking through at his daddy.....

and in deep thought during a swing.....


and his new friend, the squirrel (or chipmunk?).....

and here we are singing "He's Got the Whole World in His Hands", one of Caleb's favorites. i look kind of silly in mid-song, but i love the way little man is looking up with his sweet little smile.....

and Bella watches it all.....


hope you all had as wonderful a weekend as we did!

new look

well, i spent all of my time giving our blog a facelift instead of writing a new post! now i'm tired, so i'm off to bed because we have a full day ahead of us tomorrow.

but because i think blogs without pictures are boring, here's one of little man.....

thank goodness tomorrow's friday!

happy sunday

How deep the Father's love for us,

How vast beyond all measure

That He should give His only Son

To make a wretch His treasure

How great the pain of searing loss,

The Father turns His face away

As wounds which mar the chosen One,

Bring many sons to glory

Behold the Man upon a cross,

My sin upon His shoulders

Ashamed I hear my mocking voice,

Call out among the scoffers

It was my sin that held Him there

Until it was accomplished

His dying breath has brought me life

I know that it is finished

I will not boast in anything

No gifts, no power, no wisdom

But I will boast in Jesus Christ

His death and resurrection

Why should I gain from His reward?

I cannot give an answer

But this I know with all my heart

His wounds have paid my ransom

we sang this song at church this morning. every time we sing it, it gives me chills and brings tears to my eyes. the words are just so powerful and bring up so many emotions within me. i was very surprised to learn that it is not an old hymn, but actually written quite recently by Stuart Townend.

hope you're having a wonderful Sunday!

cutie-patootie

i'm not really sure that's how you spell it, but i am very sure that this this little man is one.

he knows just how to melt my heart.

no green-thumbs here

this was our first year to attempt to plant a tiny garden all on our own. in the past, my dad has brought us plants and helped us plant them. this year, we went to lowe's and bought the plants ourselves and we planted them with high hopes that were tragically squashed right before our eyes. we planted tomatoes, jalapenos, different herbs, and some red flowers that i can't think of the name for.

what we thought was oregano ended up being tarragon, and i do not use tarragon very much at all, so it hasn't been much good to us.

we had no idea that you have to keep cilantro trimmed. apparently, if you don't, it turns into some kind of flower and then dies?!

our red flowers also died, for the most part. we aren't sure what happened there. maybe it was just too much sun, or not enough?

so all that to say, we were ecstatic when we were finally able to gather all of this from our sad little garden.....

and yes, we are aware that this is August, and we are just now growing this, but we are excited, nonetheless.

yesterday i jammed

strawberry jam, that is.

this was my first attempt at canning anything, and i must say that it was pretty successful. i got the recipe here, and it was super easy, just a little time consuming. but it is so yummy, so i'm thinking it was worth it!


i put in a little less sugar than the recipe called for, and i ended up mashing it a little at the end, cause it was still chunkier than i like for it to be.

this morning i had a piece of toast with strawberry jam and what i'm afraid is becoming a mandatory-morning-cup-of-coffee. yum!

it's back

football, that is.

i have a love-hate relationship with the sport.

we are BIG titans fans around here, and we are blessed enough to be able to go to a lot of the games, which is one of my favorite things to do with my husband. we have had the same seats ever since our stadium opened, so we have sat with a lot of the same people for years. we have made a lot of friends; we have watched their children grow up; we have tailgated in all kinds of weather; we have cheered and yelled until we went hoarse; we have won, and we have lost; and we have had a whole lot of fun.

now for the hate aspect of the relationship. football is on at least 4 days a week - if you count college (which in this house, we definitely do). so once the season starts, it STARTS. it is here with a vengeance. there is rarely a time during the season when our tv is not either showing a game, or showing a program that is talking about a game. i understand that this is a great love of Bobby's, so I try to go along with it and stay in good spirits, because Bobby is a great love of mine. but in all honesty, by february, i will be counting down the days to the super bowl. not because i will be excited to see the game, but because that is when the off-season begins, and i will have 5 months of a sports-free atmosphere in our home (except for the pro-bowl, and march-madness, and nba playoffs, and the occasional golf tournament, and did i say 5 months sports-free? i don't know what i was thinking).

anyways, last night the titans played buffalo and won, so to kick off the season, we had a few people over. we grilled a LOT of food, and watched the game. i was having too much fun, and forgot to take any pictures until the end, so.....

here is the newest member of the family, my little nephew, not-watching the game.....


and here is Bella with her daddy (who, of course, is watching the game).....


**disclaimer: in all fairness to my husband, i must point out that the amount of sports that i am claiming is watched by him may be slightly exaggerated for dramatic effect. **

sleeping boy

this is how little man sleeps.


he will not let us put a blanket over him. he will immediately pull it off, lay on top of it, and stick his bum up in the air.

i don't normally wake him from his naps, but on this day, we had to be somewhere. so, i thought i'd take the opportunity to snap a few pictures first.

and that would be him telling me we're done with the photo shoot!

reunion

we went to my high school reunion on saturday. hard to believe that it's been 10 years, but like i said before, it's a different clock!

anyways, we had a great time, and it was really good to see everyone. i wish i could say that i kept in touch with people better than i do, but i honestly only talk to my friend, Catherine, on a regular basis. at least now that i'm on Facebook, i'm doing a little better!

here's a pic of Catherine and me. she's been my best girlfriend since we were 6 years old (we went to the same school for grades 1st-12th together). she was my maid of honor, she was there when i was in labor with Caleb - you name it, she's been there for me! i love this girl!


here is my cute hubby with me.


and here we are with my other girlfriend, Katie, and her husband.


here's to another 10 years!