Life. . .

The addition of a 3rd has definitely made life fuller.  Though there is not much recreation time for Mommy and Daddy, the joy surpasses that need.  Lilly Grace is God's gift to us, just like Madeline and Ryan.  Her addition has been a family affair.  Because of the age difference between the kids, Madeline and Ryan delight in her and enjoy her.  She has brought out a beautiful maternal side of Madeline and an unbelievable tenderness in Ryan. 

Madeline and Ryan are busy in school.  Ryan is actually halfway through kindergarten and doing incredibly well.  He is actually turning into a strong reader, which I love.  One of my favorite things is to watch him sound out a hard word.  He puts so much effort into it, and I love to watch the concentration.  Madeline is as diligent as ever, so focused and responsible.  This week, after a summer of science and history, we begin her core classes.  Both of them start soccer practice this week.  It should be an interesting season since they will be practicing and having games on different fields.

They both also have a love for friends.  We love to see their little hearts care so much about people.  Of course, Ry loving playing sports and being active with friends.  Madeline loves playing American Girl Doll and drawing pictures with her friends.  Such joys and blessings.

Lilly Grace is as active and aware as ever.  The sweet thing has learned to roll onto her tummy, but not back over, so there has been much screaming from her crib this week, as she finds herself "trapped".  And again, we have a thumb sucker.  It is so fun to watch her try to get it. . .she's still working on coordination.  She also loves to "talk" and smile.  We cannot get enough of it!  Off to feed the little bundle of joy.

 

Virginia Beach 2011

Thank you, Daddy for once again taking us to Virginia Beach with you on a work trip.  Again this year, Daddy was able to get an oceanfront Hampton Inn.  We were a little nervous about the trip with Lilly Grace, but it ended up being an incredible trip with great family time.  On two special nights, after dinner and ice cream, Daddy shared his love of go-carting with Madeline and Ryan.  Here's Madeline getting ready to take off!

And here's the Ry Guy, ready to burn some rubber. . .unfortunately, the truth is, that his car ended up being a dud, and super slow, but he still had fun and a great attitude!

You go girl!  Check out the hair flapping up behind her.  She's a girl on a mission. . .to be #1.  I love the way she tucks her lower lip under her upper lip when she's really concentrating.

Okay, this smile says it all.  Ryan is SO delighting in this experience.

Oh yeah. . .you go boy.  He's on a mission to beat everyone.  This little boy has a combination of his mommy's and his daddy's competitive nature, which means he is ULTRA competitive. 

Always such a joy, our sweet and wonderful and witty and intelligent Madeline is!

Okay, the boy's facial expressions are awesome.  He wears his thoughts and emotions on his face, and it is such a joy to watch as a parent.

Hanging with Daddy on the balcony.  We had some awesome nights on the beach.  One night the ways were so rocking that they carried Madeline and Ryan about 0.3 miles down the beach.  Daddy and Mommy kept up with them on the sand, and boy did we have a workout.  It was incredible to watch they.  They had so, so much fun together, experiencing these awesome waves.  At points, they were even holding hands and running through the waves.  Matt and I felt our hearts melting.  Blessed we are with amazing, precious children.

Our girl, reading USA Today in bed.

How fun are indoor pools at hotels???  We had so much fun swimming in the pool during the day.  Once day we even went out on the beach with Lilly Grace.  She slept the whole time under the umbrella in a bouncy seat.  Madeline and Ryan and I had an awesome time playing in the watch, catching sand crabs, and digging holes.  Poor Ry got a little sting from a jellyfish, but he recovered well!

Our pretty princess.  They love through diving sticks and balls into the water, and diving for them.

Best Friends.

One night we fed seagulls from our balcony.  It was awesome to watch them swarm around us, as we through up bread. . .a little scary, BUT FUN!

A Visit From Grandpa

July was filled with fun, including a special visit from Grandpa.  Madeline and Ryan LOVED their special time with Grandpa, especially since he played Uno with them about 50 times.  How blessed we were by my dad's visit.  Lilly Grace is his 11th and youngest grandaughter, and grandchild 9, 10 and 11 were born within 6/8 weeks of each other.  Of course, Grandpa was enamored by his sweet new granddaughter.  Can't wait until we can post the pictures we took of Lilly Grace and Grandpa!

Madeline and Ryan are the best of friends.  Here they are hanging on the couch being silly with one another.  They often make each other laugh uncontrollably, and they spur each other on with great imagination as they play "pretend" or figures.  I pray for them that they will be best friends, and like iron sharpening iron.

I'm pretty sure that this is them singing their insanely silly HUMADUBA song, which they made up.  It is impossible not to giggle as they give their concert.  Madeline spearheads it, Ryan gets a little shy, and they both delight in their silly song exploits.

Going through a picture album with Grandpa.  Both Madeline and Ryan love cuddling right up with Grandpa.

So sweet.  My dad LOVES his role as Grandpa and often tells us that he's shocked that he has so many grandchildren.  He is so good about remembering their birthdays and sending little gifts.  Thanks for a wonderful visit Grandpa.  It even included a trip to the movies to see Marmaduke.

Lilly Grace--July 2011

Madeline's Beauty Salon

Oh my goodness, Matt and I had a great laugh.  What a wonderful brother Ryan is, allowing his sister to practice her beauty talents on him.  He is such a good sport, and we think Madeline has a future in beauty. . .I mean, check out that hair style!

Kids Week at The Summit

I love watching my boy worship!  The kids had an awesome time at Kid's Week. . .it's VBS with a cool name.  Their favorite part was the Penny Wars. . .boys against girls, with adult team captains.  Everyday, boys and girls brought pennies with them.  The money collected went toward a specific ministry.  When the winner was declared, the captain of the winning team got to make the captain of the losing team do something silly like. . .wearing costumes, painting nails, dancing onstage, petting worms. . .    

Like I said, I love watching Madeline and Ryan worship God.

Look at my girl with her hands in the air!

The last night of Kids Weeks ended with a carnival.  It was complete with games, bounce houses, cotton candy, and snow cones, all set up in the Summit's parking lot. . .AWESOME!