Our Recent Accomplishments

I found it really helpful to set some goals for myself during Luke's deployment. In August, I completed a one mile open water swim, in the ocean of all places. The swim was in a nice, calm harbor, but the water was still cold and salty. I have new respect for people who swim in the ocean regularly. I'm also glad that the shark sightings off Cape Cod were reported after my race.
In September, I completed a sprint triathlon (400 meter swim, 11 mile bike, 5K run). At the end of September I ran my first half marathon. I was so happy to see my mom, Ellie, and Clar at the finish line!
My sister braved the early morning chill to bring the kids to the triathlon. Here's Ellie sporting my finisher's medal and showing off one of her new faces.


Clar was content to sit in his stroller and eat crackers.

Ellie has been working hard on mastering jigsaw puzzles. It's a great activity for rainy days with Grammy.

Of course, Clar has to participate. He likes taking puzzles apart more than putting them back together.
I spend every day with the kids, so sometimes it takes my ancient blog to show me how much they're growing and changing. We're enjoying our time here so much, but we look forward to being back at home in Albuquerque and showing our friends and family there how much we've grown!

Summer in Pictures

Fourth of July parade in Wakefield

Dress Like a Cow Day at Chick-Fil-A (we didn't go, but Frankie and Kori brought back hats!)

The Tall Ships in Boston

Clar learned to eat and Ellie learned to feed him

Ellie's first movie: an IMAX show at the New England Aquarium

A Rare Moment

A Boy and A Frog

So, he's not always happy. I was trying to get a picture of the kids in their Pentagon outfits (from Grandpa C, of course), but it was late and Clar wasn't having it.

Summer's over, and it's time to...

...Bring on the fall!

New Every Morning

"Yet this I call to mind,

And therefore I have hope:

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;

His mercies never come to an end;

They are new every morning;

Great is your faithfulness."

Lamentations 3:21-23

I Know I'll Forget

I really like scrapbooking as a way of storing pictures. They're better than photo albums for being able to look back and tell the story of when someone was born, or when we went on that camping trip. But since I'm two years behind on scrapbooking and I just seem to keep taking pictures, when I finally get to the pictures I'm taking these days I know I won't remember the kids' milestones to complete the memories.

Like how Ellie's so proud of herself for knowing "the whole song" (many whole songs), so I don't correct her when she sings, "Tea, a drink with John and Fred. And that will bring us back to Doe, oh, oh, oh, Doe!"

Perks

There are a lot of upsides to living with so many grown-ups. There are lots of people to play with Ellie and Clar. We take turns making dinner and grocery shopping, so the burden of feeding everyone is shared. Also, my brother Frankie works at Edible Arrangements and occasionally brings home extras!

Making Alumni Proud

Here's some some fun with dominoes from Rochester Institute of Technology, posted here especially for Luke.

Finally, Some Pictures!

I had to order a new camera cord, but I finally have the pictures from my camera on my computer. So here are some pictures to tell the story of our trip from Albuquerque to Massachusetts.
Thanks to the Newnams, Enfields, Overbeeks, Baileys, and Thompsons for taking care of Ellie and Clar while I packed and cleaned!
We celebrated Ellie's birthday (and Uncle Randy's, too!) at the farm in South Dakota. Ellie enjoyed her princess cake and took advantage of the sugar rush to pose for a picture or two.Clar fell in love with Wendy and Cosmo while Ellie talked my aunt, uncle, and cousins into playing dollhouse with her around the clock in Illinois.
We spent a whole week at the home of my mom's sister and brother-in-law in Michigan. Ellie took rides in three different boats, swam out to the raft with a life vest on, and baked us many sand breakfasts. Clar learned to splash, and now there's no turning back! The boy loves the water.




After our week at the lake, we drove a short way to Battle Creek, Michigan, to celebrate the wedding of my brother Frankie to his bride Kori. Ellie performed her flower girl duties well, and even allowed the ring bearer to help her toss petals on the floor. She was really in her element at the reception, where she danced the afternoon away. Being a flower girl is exhausting!


Here's Clar enjoying relief from humidity in front of the fan with Grandpa C:
Ellie owned the dance floor:

Ellie and Frankie, the groom:
Ellie dancing with
Ellie and Clar survived the trip and are finding new ways to communicate and play together all the time. Ellie, always imitating the grownups, offered Clar her knuckle to bite on to soothe his aching gums.
We arrived in Wakefield, MA, all in one piece on June 23rd. We thank God for granting us safe and uneventful travel, and for providing so many family members to drive with us and welcome us into their homes along the way.