Father's Day

Aubrey, Lily, Emery and Carter have been blessed with an amazing Daddy. I don't think Mike ever imagined he would be a father of four precious children but he sure does a great job with them. People always ask me how I do it and I tell them I couldn't do it without the help of my wonderful husband. The girls especially love the evening time with their Daddy when he gives them a bath (I have to say it is the most thorough, soapy bath I have ever seen!) and puts them to bed reading stories and saying prayers. I cherish the moments I overhear Mike talking to our children about everything from why it rains to many of the stories in the bible. He is able to give explanations to those questions that not all of us have patience for and they listen to him with such admiration and innocence. These are special moments and qualities about their Dad that they will grow up to treasure.

This Father's Day we went over to Scott and Cindy's in the evening and enjoyed some time in the pool.

The Hall girls swimming with their Daddy, Morgan and Maddie.
This was the first Father's Day William spent without his dad. Jay Chenoweth is in our thoughts every day and we miss him dearly!

The days of falling asleep anywhere and actually staying there. I guess all the partying wore him out!

Roemlers and Leamons

We get together with the Roemlers and Leamons once every few months as families. We feed the kids and let them play for a little before attempting to put them to bed so we can have some "adult" time which includes eating an uninterrupted dinner and playing Guitar Hero or Mexican Train. Doug is doing a super job of entertaining the kids with bubbles.

The evening started out calmly with the kids playing in the pool with their clothes on...

...but the real fun began when everyone was only in panties or diapers!
Daddy and Lily were sharing some delicious cake.
More cake please!

Madi, Izzy and Aubrey all clean and ready for bed.

Vacation Bible School

I don't have any pictures from our week at VBS but I wanted to share about this wonderful experience. At Foundry, kids cannot go to VBS until they have finished kindergarten unless a parent volunteers. I have been helping for the past 3 years (since Aubrey was 5 months old). The past two years I have lead a group of kids to each station which is mostly a supervising position but this year my dear friend, Sarah, and I lead one of the bible study stations. This was more of a teaching position which had both of us in our element. We were able to help the kids experience some of the stories about Moses in the bible....from him talking to God in the burning bush to him leading the Isrealites out of Egypt to the Promised Land. It was amazing to watch the impact that the whole week had on each of those kids. God sightings were happening all over the place. More importantly, this was the first year Aubrey was in the preschool part of VBS instead of the nursery. She learned exactly what the elementary age kids did but on a smaller scale. They had bible lessons, did crafts, had snacks, played games and went to music. She was very excited to go to VBS each day (although a couple of times she asked if we were going to HEB but I knew what she meant!) The best part for me is to watch all three girls sing along and do the hand motions to the music from the curriculum. We love to play it LOUDLY in the car! Aubrey has already asked if she can go back to VBS and I have promised her that she will get to go each summer! God is good!

Hermann Park

On Thursdays during the summer we have a schedule of activities planned for whoever is available to get together. Since there is no MDO during the summer this is a welcome adventure each week. The first time we were able to make it out, we went to Hermann Park with the Tuley's (Kaylinn was at her grandma's house) and the Michaelis'. We parked in the Zoo parking lot, rode the train to the park/splash pad, played, had lunch and hopped back on the train to get back to the car. I highly recommend this activity. The park was amazing with 4 different play areas, plenty of places to picnic and an opportunity to cool off in the water. Needless to say, we had a wonderful time!

Summer Days

We have had a wonderful start to our summer. It has been so nice to relax and enjoy time around the house without rushing everywhere. The first few weeks we spent a lot of time outside in the afternoons. We even ate dinner outside most evenings. Now that it is sooooo hot out we are finding things to do inside. This is Carter's first time in the swing outside. All he is interested in is figuring out how to get the buckle strap in his mouth.

Saying "cheese" and blowing bubbles at the same time takes talent! That is Aubrey in the background practicing her gymnastics.I LOVE these precious moments between sisters. There is nothing better than seeing your children reading to each other. Aubrey loves to be the teacher while Lily and Emery try to be good students!
Carter is chewing on everything right now. His favorite thing to put in his mouth is his feet but he will settle for anything he can reach.
More sisterly love!
Thanks for sharing your paci with me, Carter!

Road Trip Day 8

We did find some fun things to do on the farm such as

...collect rocks...

...chill...

...ride 4-wheelers...

...and play.

The newest addition to the farm is this fire pit so we were able to roast marshmallows for 'smores and enjoy a beautiful summer evening under the stars. Yummy!
Allison is pondering a strategy for eating her 'smore.
Finger lickin' good!The Castillos
There are no pictures from Day 9 of our road trip because although we had a wonderful time on our vacation, we were ready to get home! Fun times, great memories!