Memorial Day Weekend

Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. John 15:13

I hope you are enjoying your Memorial Day weekend and taking some time to remember and honor those who have lost their lives for our freedom. I am forever grateful to them for their sacrifice and for making it possible for me to live such a blessed life in our wonderful country.

Flashback to 2005

I stumbled upon some photos from Memorial Day weekend 2005, so I thought I’d share them with you…

I can’t believe how many things have changed in the past five years!

We’re Home Again!

My sister Sarah took this photo of me with Julia at Stage Fort Park in Gloucester, Massachusetts. It was a beautiful day in Gloucester on Tuesday, and we enjoyed spending time together by the sea. As you may have guessed by now, Chris, Gabe, Julia and I just got back from New England. We had a whirlwind trip and visited lots of family  in Massachusetts and Connecticut while we were there.  I have over 700 photos to sort through so get ready for some great posts ahead :)! Before I get to all that, though, I need to get going on the laundry and unpacking. I hope you are all having a great week!

The Many Faces of Gabe

Just for fun :)!

Julia’s 8 Month Update

It’s time for Julia’s 8 month update! Actually, she is about 8 1/2 months old at this point, but I haven’t had a chance to blog about it yet :). A lot has changed in the past month! She is now sitting up by herself to play, rolling around on the floor like a pro and eating lots of different types of baby food. She’s still very petite, 15 lbs -  at a recent doctor visit we found out that she is in the 5th percentile for height and at the 10th percentile for weight, but they don’t seem too concerned about that. She is over her “stranger anxiety” for the most part – a huge blessing! We haven’t really been using baby signs with her like we did with Gabe, so she isn’t doing any of those, but she does say Dada, Mama and “noooo” (in a cute drawn out way). I doubt she knows what they mean (except possibly Dada), but it is very fun to hear. Still no teeth, but she does seem to be teething, so maybe soon… Here are some cute things she’s been doing: she puts her lips together and whistles, she whispers baby talk to us and she laughs every time she sees herself in a mirror :). As always, she is a happy girl who loves to smile, giggle and cuddle. We are so in love with this adorable little sweetie!

More July Photos to Share

I took Emma and Gabe to the gardens one morning recently where we spent most of our time in the children’s garden and the butterfly house. As we were leaving, they both really wanted to go see the amphitheater by the nature center (which never would have occurred to me to visit on a day when there was no event going on). Emma had fun posing on the stage, then they both ran to the top of the grassy hill and celebrated being so high up. I love how kids can teach us to find joy off the beaten path :).