Trip to Georgia

A couple of weeks ago we were able to go down to Georgia for Michael's sister Jocelyn's high school graduation. We had a great time visiting family and celebrating with Jocelyn. She is off to BYU this summer and we are so proud of her. Way to go Jocie!




And here is a photo of Jocelyn and her brother John performing a duet for the family. Jocelyn has a beautiful voice and John is a very talented musician.


While we were in Georgia, we were able to go hiking one day. I neglected to bring with me any good hiking shoes and this proved to be a pretty difficult hike, but the view was well worth it.

John Deere Boys

My grandfather, James, is a huge John Deere collector. He is a lifelong farmer and loves his John Deere. So naturally, Noah also loves his John Deere tractors. But, because he knows how much his Grandpa James loves them, he actually calls them "Papa James Tractors". That phrase has become a well heard phrase around these parts because anytime he sees a green and yellow tractor he immediately starts pointing and yelling! It is pretty cute! My mom found these shirts for the boys recently and Noah loves it! He wants to wear it everyday and is so sad to find out it is dirty. And I can ONLY allow Luke to wear his when I know that Noah's is clean as well or it is a major catastrophe. So here are a couple photos of the boys in their "Papa James Tractor Shirts".

Mother's Day 2009

Here are some photos of Mother's Day. My kids made me some beautiful artwork and also some wonderful cards. I am so blessed to be a mother to these children. They are truly gems and they make my life so happy and full. I thank my Heavenly Father for sending me such wonderful children to raise and care for.

Powell Touch a Truck

We were able to attend the Powell Touch a Truck this month. I had pretty low expectations for this thing and was really only expecting a couple of emergency vehicles, but thought it would be fun no matter what. Turns out, it was huge! There was seriously like every kind of motorized vehicle imaginable there. It threatened rain, but luckily stayed dry until later in the day so we could spend a lot of time there. The kids loved it. Noah was totally in his element. We had a great day and are thankful to have neat things like this to attend.

Ohio Midwives Rally

Today we were able to attend a rally at the state capital to support legislation for licensure of certified professional midwives in Ohio. Right now, direct entry midwifery is allegal, neither legal nor illegal. There is no legislation in place to protect both midwives and the families they serve. This is an important issue to Michael and I because as most of you know we have chosen homebirth for one of our child's birth and plan to go that route again in the future. We want to keep homebirth as an option for families, and most importatly a SAFE option. We had a great time supporting this cause. If anyone wants more information on Ohio Midwifery legislations, please visit here.

Cousins

One thing we love about living in Ohio is being close to cousins. The kids love being able to be close to their cousins and having built in playmates. Last night, we were able to do family home evening together. We planted our "Gospel Flowers" (the lesson is really cute if you are interested, it is here ). We had a rare opportunity to capture a picture of all of the cousins as well! We had so much fun and enjoyed having them participate with us.

Some New Photos of Luke!