Sarah's turn!

Sarah was still getting over a cold (and the last of her 2 year molars) when I took those photos of the boys. So, as we played in the beautiful 65 degree unseasonably warm March twilight, I got a few fun shots.




Just a classic Sarah look.


She really doesn't look like a toddler anymore! She's all girl...




She hit herself on the head with the shaft of a golf club! I love that pout!

New photos of the boys

Thomas was being so cute this morning. He's been sick all week and is finally starting to feel better. We were having some one on one time sharing a nectarine, when he announced, with head in hands "I really do like nectarines when they're not hard. They're really yummy when their soft and juicy like these!"

I agree : )

I'd just returned from a Lifestyle Kids 6 month photo session and had my camera handy, so I snapped this:



Then Jacob emerged from the basement, asking for chocolate cake. I bribed him (since he doesn't like to be photographed). Here's the fruit of the bribe... not too bad!



Unfortunately, the moment was ruined when I informed Jacob (who has had a fever for the last two nights) that he'd be taking a nap when his siblings nap. His pronouncement: "That's the worst thing I've ever heard!"

Oh well.

I am back! I promise.

Without having an internet connection (I am 37,000 feet above the earth as I type this) I think the last time I blogged was November. Seriously, I think I’ve been too busy. I remember telling Brad at Thanksgiving that I just needed to make it to the second week of February and things would settle down. So, I began counting down the weeks…

Here I sit, on the way to Scottsdale, on the 15th of February. Back in November, I could never have anticipated what lay ahead of me. All of the busyness and business expansion happened, if not because of my efforts then in spite of them : ) But, adding to the life lessons we pick up along the way was a resounding sense of the Lord saying “not your plans, Mine.”

Today marks the first day of my third trimester of this pregnancy. I am amazed that I still battle nausea daily. It is not as debilitating as it was in the first weeks, but I am growing weary of it. Having said that, a friend of mine was so sick with her last baby that she had to have an IV line inserted so that she could receive fluids and anti-nausea meds throughout the duration of her gestation. So, really, I have nothing to complain about. I am functionally pretty normal (though I am guessing that those close to me are secretly really looking forward to me not being pregnant any more!). I am convinced that being pregnant at 30 is entirely different than being pregnant at 23. This has been a poignant reminder that my body is aging. I am so looking forward to meeting our little Joel Andrew in May. He certainly is a busy little guy.



Joel about 10 weeks ago. We think his profile looks like Tommy's did in utero.

The last time I put any of my thoughts here for you to see, I promised to talk about my Grandma’s visit with her dear friend, Beth. Grandma reminded me of this last week, though I hadn’t really ever forgotten. I just hadn’t found the time. When Grandma and Grandpa flew from New Mexico (actually, they flew from Texas but live in NM) to Minnesota for my birthday in October, I had the privilege of accompanying my Grandmother (dad’s mom) to visit her friend, Beth. Beth lives just outside the Minneapolis/St. Paul area, and Grandma rarely sees her. I think the last time they saw each other was the weekend of my wedding, almost 10 years ago. They talk to each other by phone and email often. In fact, I think Beth and Grandma have a scheduled phone date just like Grandma and Grandpa and I do. Let me re-emphasize one thing here, my Grandmother, who is in her 80s, uses email to communicate with her friend between phone conversations. I was 13 when I got my first computer – a 486! - and Grandma sent me my very first email. This was not someone to reluctantly come to terms with the technological age, she blazed into it ready and willing. Most of you would envy the Macs that grace their desktops.

Since so many months have passed since their visit, I fear I cannot remember how many years Beth and Grandma have known each other. My Grandpa and Beth’s husband graduated from West Point together in the 40s. The women didn’t meet then, though. I seem to remember that they met at Fort Bliss after they were both married. This, however, could be mere construct on my part. Perhaps the funniest part of hearing their stories as they related them to one another and to me was Grandma’s admission that she didn’t like Beth at all when they first met. It had something to do with Beth’s earrings, I think. I am glad that mere pieces of metal did not end up getting in the way of this life-long friendship.

Two thinks struck me, as I sat with these two wonderful women. First, that they’d already been fast friends for 20 or more years at the time that I was born. Somehow, that gave a little more weight to my dad’s assertion that while we’re given our family, we have the privilege of adding to it with our friends. The second thing that really hit home that afternoon was this: we all have stories. Of course we will all tacitly nod at this statement, or even think to ourselves “of course we do, what a obvious thing to say.” But really, as we live our lives, day by day we’re building our legacies.

Each time a President leaves office, or a new administration begins, we hear talk of legacy building. It seems to reference the large things, the things about the presidency that will stand out on the landscape of history. I am not speaking here about events. What I took from this afternoon spent with my Grandmother and her friend was a sense of a joint legacy, a shared history that was more than mere shared experience. We all have that opportunity each day that we live. We can choose to just “get through the next few days/weeks/months” as I referred to at the beginning of this post, or we can live each of those days to do the best we can for those with whom we interact; not only the people we love but the people we don’t even know. The deep breath we take and the smile on our faces after waiting in a long line at a store with cranky kids, or the choice we make not to complain about the road construction or the $15 per bag fee when we check our luggage.

At the end of the day, my gut-check is this: Did I teach my children to love Jesus more in what I did and didn’t do, and in doing so do I love Him more? Sadly, too many days, I think my answer is “no”. As my story builds and I add to a shared history with those around me, I strive to have more days where my answer is “yes,” but only with His help, strength and grace.


Grandma is the one with the lovely white hair. I do hope I inherit this beautiful white (I seem to have inherited the other characteristics of her hair, why not that?).

My kids, again!

We went to Como Zoo today. I grew up going to Como - It was wonderful! It's so much more kid friendly than the MN Zoo (of which we are members... so no Zoo bashing here), partly because it's smaller, so it's easier for little legs. I didn't have to carry anyone out of the park! We had a ball. Here is Jacob, in charge of his siblings, headed toward the entrance. He managed to get them turned around to indulge his mom's desire to snap a photo. Sarah really is there underneath that baseball cap. She wanted to wear one, since her brothers were, but all I had for her was my MN Gopher Hockey cap. She couldn't really see well at all ; )



We had fun looking at the HUGE Gorillas in the primates building. When we walked out of the building, Jacob and Tommy began singing a favorite Veggie Tales Silly Song, the lyric is this "If it doesn't have a tail it's not a monkey - even if it has a monkey kind of shape - if it doesn't have a tail it's not a monkey, if it doesn't have a tail it's not a monkey it's an ape!"

So, the natural follow up question from Mom: "was the Gorilla a monkey or an ape?" They considered it for a moment - and with a good amount of confidence announced that it was an ape. Good job, boys. Thanks Veggie Tales : )



I was just musing about technology with my dad. He told me that when my Grandmother was born, commercial radio was not even on the air yet. And here are my kids, fewer than 90 years later, playing on a computer together. Jacob told me today, "my game isn't loading. Maybe if we turn it off and turn it back on again, it will work." Of course, it did. We'd expect that of a kid in this generation. My first computer was a IBM 486. It had just about enough power to type a letter. I thought I was pretty cool! It didn't have spell check, and I typed a whole paper about education and spelled it "edjucation." The irony.



We go to the pool a bit in the summer (yes, it really is warm enough for that in MN) and while the kids LOVE the water, I think sometimes they love the snack bar more!

Getting ready to head home

Well, since arriving in Arizona 7 weeks ago, I've been largely silent on my blog... working 13 hour days will do that. But, things are up and running here - thanks to my amazing team of photographers - and we're looking at heading home next week. I've learned lots of amazing things here, not the least of which is that 85 degrees in the dark with no humidity is actually pretty cool. And by "cool" I mean "chilly," as opposed "neat," although that adjective also applies. This comment is largely for the Midwesterners reading this blog, who have long made fun of people from the south/southwest. The other thing I learned is that it takes a lemon a really long time to ripen on a tree. We have a lemon tree in our back patio area at the house in which we are staying. The kids and I have been watching the same lemon ripen since we got here. It's just about ready!

Yesterday I killed my first (and hopefully last) scorpion. I really have no issues with bugs, I am usually the appointed bug-handler in our house. But, I must admit, that was a bit much for me. Tommy got into a tussle with some fire ants about a week ago. At first, they had the upper hand (and have left the bites to prove it), but then Tommy introduced them to the fountain he was playing in - and they lost. All of that said, I've not seen one mosquito! ; )

Our team here consists of four amazing women, I am so blessed to have them in our world. Heather, Laura, Jacqueline and Michelle make up the photographic talent of First Day Photo Arizona, and are a wonderful team to build on! Laura had us come to a favorite photo spot the other day to do some family photos a la Arizona. Here are just a few. THANK YOU LAURA! Jacob was in his typical "I hate pictures" form (at least he wasn't asking her to erase them... sometimes that's the direction he goes), so we had to get creative! Enjoy - and think of us next week with our little ones - ROADTRIP!

Family Fun in Florida

We've been in Florida for the last week, visiting family and having fun. When real life hits again tomorrow, I am sure I'll be silent for awhile as I catch up. I've got a few sessions to fininsh editing... so here are a few vacation photos. If I don't post these tonight, it'll be a few weeks. This excellent photography is all my husband's work : ) Awesome job, honey. It was hard to choose what to share!

Early in the week Sarah Joy got her first haircut by none other than her Auntie Morgan. With the extra weight out of the back of her hair, her curls got even curlier! My sister is a cosmetologist, among her many talents, and she gave the boys their first cuts (at about 7 months of age for each boy), as well. Sarah did a beautiful job... I think she felt pampered.

Sarah was a little tenative as she looked at the Ocean for the first time. She had to have her dollies and her pacifier with her to go check it out. It wasn't long before she was playing in the surf!


All three kiddos had a great time playing on, in and around the lifeguard's chair. These three photos really capture their individuality. Jacob must have jumped off the ladder 30 times.













The boys had a great day... this picnic table was a great place to grab some shade. Of course, Daddy couldn't miss this photo op!

This photo just about says it all. Jacob was in heaven in the sand!