my baby is 4

I am not exaggerating when I say that Ari has been talking about his 4th birthday nearly every day since his last birthday. He has been anticipating this for a long time! This weekend was full of birthday fun and visiting with our newest little nephew Owen!

This was the first year that he was tearing in to his presents and excitedly yelling about each one and how he wanted to play with it right now. He got lots of games and so we spent most of Saturday just playing games with him.

Erin and Ari are birthday buddies since they are only 6 days apart. Happy Birthday Erin!

Erin's MIL was also in town. Hi Sandy!! Thanks for joining the party!

After cake pops and ice cream the kids ran around and wrestled until they were zombies. This is the only time I can think we intentionally let him stay up 2 hours past his bedtime. Ah!

Before Erin and Chris had to head back home, we got to spend a little more time with them and Owen. He is so precious! Hooray for babies, birthdays, and family fun!

This morning I put a candle on his sausage and sang to him. With all the celebrating we did this weekend it felt like his birthday was over. But it's not! So today we are hanging at home then going to do something fun this evening when daddy gets off work. 

It doesn't matter how big or old Ari gets, he will always be our baby. He has an impeccable memory that continues to blow us away. He is very helpful around the house and rarely gets in trouble for disobedience. Of course he has his moments because parenting really never ends, but we are finally out of the phase of constantly correcting him. He has a love for his sister that we never imagined. He plays with her, includes her, hugs her, tucks her in, sings to her, always notices when she isn't around, and even quotes Bible verses when she is disobeying! He even recognizes the newest baby when he gives me a hug. He is (still) very outgoing and when we see a stranger he wants to know their name. He would rather draw his own pictures than to sit and color one in a book. He has a wild imagination and can make up the craziest stories ever. (He gets that from his dad!) He is learning how to read and will frequently ask how to spell new words. We could never imagine that a child could be so energetic about life but he is a walking "party" and knows how to make everything fun and enjoyable. We love you baby boy!

i heart fall

These two have so much fun playing together. 


 
I never know how I'm going to find them,whether it's crammed in the same car or taking turns pushing each other in it.


 
Here is our own Felix Baumgartner jumping from space.


 
Ari had his last soccer game of the season. Here is his ready stance.


 
It was a cold and windy morning so Evangeline found the perfect way to stay warm.


 
I am so proud of my boy. He started the season with no ambition to play with others. Half way through the season he started warming up to the idea and by the last game he was not only playing goalie, he was out running down the field and back.
 

 
We finally made it down to our favorite orchard, Appleworks.


 
Unfortunately it was a muddy mess and this little girl just wanted to run around.


 
She was off to find her own special pumpkin...they were usually green or rotten and she would stop to say "eewww".


 
It worked out great that my brother and his family and also my sister and her husband could all go at the same time as us. They lucked out on the great pumpkin finds!


 

 
These two are always a pair!


 
Ari and his other buddy, my sister.


 


 
We ended the weekend with another wedding. The weather was beautiful and so was the scenery. I wish I took more pictures but we were busy chasing around the kids. With an outdoor ceremony and reception the kids were able to run out lots of energy. We are so happy for Clay (whom I have known all my life) and Michelle and that we were able to share in their special day. Congrats!

annual trip {brown county/nashville}

Every year we look forward to going on trails, eating fudge, and sharing warm drinks down in Brown County and Nashville. AJ gets Columbus Day off and we have found it is an ideal time to go since most people are at work. Otherwise, Nashville can get really busy this time of year.

We were afraid it was going to be too cold when we woke up to 32 degree temps and frost on the ground! But it warmed up nicely and wasn't too chilly for the kids.

Ari had to be the "line leader" on the trail.

Evangeline had so much fun hanging out on daddy and just seeing the sights.

After a while they were both ready to just play on the playground.

By the time we did all that adults were really ready for that fudge and mochaccino!

The kids shared an over priced hot chocolate. I cringe at things like that but AJ does a great job reminding me that we only do it one time a year and that the kids will really enjoy it.

They definitely enjoyed it! Evangeline was looking for more surprises all over the place.  But daddy's pockets were empty after that special little treat. :)

Last year we got a family picture on these steps. Evangeline was only 6 months old. It will be fun to continue this traditional family picture location and see how much they grow each year. By this time next year we will have an 8 month old to add to the picture!

quality time

This weekend was full of fun activities. Ari had a soccer game and it has been fun to see him finally relax and enjoy playing on a team. He decided to take the position as all-time goalie and he has proven to be an asset to his team by stopping the other team from scoring. 

He doesn't let the ball get anywhere near the goal and will run out to kick it away. The season started out rough but he has loosened up a lot and seems to have fun the whole game.

AJ and I had to leave for a wedding in Madison so the kids stayed with the grandparents for the night. We love to go to Madison because it is such a cute, quaint town with lots of little shops. It has a great view of the Ohio River and a state park that offers lots of hiking trails. 

This wedding was all outdoors including the reception and the weather couldn't have been more beautiful: no rain, a warm breeze, and in the 70's. The bride is very special to both AJ and I. He went to middle and high school with her, and they continued a close friendship all through college at Butler. Erin and I met at Butler when I joined the same sorority as her. She is a person that everyone loves to be around.

This little country wedding had the best food and decorations. It was simple, yet classy. I don't care how fancy the food is as long as it's good. But you really can't beat fried chicken, mashed potatoes, green beans, corn, chicken noodles, and rolls for dinner! Forget about traditional wedding cake, this wedding was topped off with all kinds of pie! It was so fun to catch up with people we hadn't seen in years.

Our view from the hotel overlooked Madison. 

AJ and I had lots of quality time together. We stayed up late, had uninterrupted showers and conversations, slept in, and just had our own schedule. It's always hard for me to be away from the kids...if the wedding was in Indy we would have just gone and got them after the wedding. But being away forced me to relax and just enjoy this time alone with my love. Our conversations revolved around how fun our kids are, the silly things they do and how big they are getting. We had some discussion on a much needed name for this next child. I think we have one but the big reveal will have to wait. :)

It was nice to spend lots of time outdoors. It feels like we haven't been out much because it was so hot, then it was cold and rainy. I finally got some much needed exercise after being a slob for the first trimester of this pregnancy.

We also got to do some shopping in Edinburgh on our way back to Indy. Then finally it was time to get the kids. We couldn't wait to hear how much fun they had with grandma and grandpa.

We couldn't wait to see them any longer and went to a park before heading home and having to unpack everything.

We found some giant leaves and even a giant walking stick for daddy!

We had pictures taken at this park earlier in the year so whenever we come here Ari wants to pose for a picture. This kid has the best memory and won't let us forget about anything. We are so thankful for our little blessings and the joy they bring to us.