How to handle behavior changes!?

Whenever I start feeling like I can't stop pacing (in my mind and on my feet) about one of my children, I know it’s time to get on my knees.

One of the most powerful things we can do for our children is pray for them.  I can take whatever concerns I have for my son’s future, get next to his room at night, give those concerns to Jesus in prayer, and walk away with the peace that God heard my heart.

There have been SO many times where I was troubled about something I was seeing in one of their behaviors, or some sort of phase they were going through (even picky eating from my 18 month old teething toddler) and after I started praying about it, the Lord did not fail to answer in some way.

This is my hope as we enter the new school year!

I defiantly am no perfect Mama but with a little research and help from a perfect God I was able to find 5 prayers that I am going to be praying over my school boys this year and I just thought I would share them incase they would help you too!! 

Hard Work

Lord, I pray that my child will remember that he can do all things through Christ who gives him strength (Philippians 4:13)!  As his hands write out math problems and complete assignments, may he do so with a happy heart, knowing that he is working for your glory (Colossians 3:23).  In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Kindness

Lord, I pray that my child will be kind and compassionate toward his classmates and teachers (Ephesians 4:32).  May his speech always be gracious (Colossians 4:6).  May he never repay evil for evil but always seek to do good to others and to everyone (1 Thessalonians 5:15).  May he seek out the lonely child on the playground and defend the child who is hurting.  In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Friendship

Lord, I pray for my child to have friends who will sharpen one another like iron sharpens iron (Proverbs 27:17).  May he have wisdom and discernment to choose friends who will be good company and spur him on toward love and good deeds (1 Corinthians 15:33, Hebrews 10:24-25).  May he be a leader among his friends by always being the first one to share, offer a kind word, and do what’s right.  In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Self-Control

Lord, I pray that my child will not stir up shenanigans during times of instruction!

  May he offer his body to you as a living sacrifice and may he be transformed by the renewal of his mind so that he may discern your will (Romans 12:1-2).  May he discipline his body like an athlete, training it to do as it should (1 Corinthians 9:27).  May he keep his tongue from evil (Psalm 34:13).  May my child show his love for you, Jesus, by obeying your commands (John 14:15).  In Jesus’ name, Amen.

The Heart of a Servant

Lord, I pray that you will give my child eyes to see opportunities to be a blessing.  May my boy have a heart of humility and serve others in love (Galatians 5:13).  May my son use his gifts well by helping others (1 Peter 4:10).  May he let others use the monkey bars first and may he choose the back of the line in the morning  because the greatest among us shall be servants (Matthew 23:11).  In Jesus’ name, Amen.

After only 9 days of school I am already noticing a change in my child's attitude!! Tonight I am choosing to lay that burden down...

At His feet.

The Lord knows what he needs and He is in control!

Shout out to daddy!!

Maybe it's because he had a week off of work and now I'm incredibly missing him so much each day...or maybe it is because Lane has started school and I once again have seen a new side of my husband!? But I just had to give a shout out on here to the most amazing daddy in the whole world!! 

When I married Matt I knew he was a great Christian and would make an amazing husband. However, I had no way of even coming close to imagining the incredible father he'd become.

 I've never seen a man more devoted to his children. He is involved in every single aspect of their lives and truly enjoys spending time with each of them. I'm blessed to have him as my husband and couldn't be a prouder, more grateful wife. 

I'm so thankful that the only normal my children will every know is a life surrounded by love and a father who will always teach them most importantly about God, and love, but also protect them, be and example for them and enjoy them.

You truly astound me babe! And I am in awe of you daily!! But especially lately!!! 

God could not have blessed me and our boys with a more amazing man! Someone who meets their every need above and beyond what is ever expected!! Grateful is an understatement! I am so blessed and not because of me and who I am but because of Jesus and who HE is!! 

Incase you were wondering....

I just wanted to let y’all know that we made it through the first week of school.

Maybe I am looking for words of affirmation because, as you know, this is no small feat.

As I told you in a previous post...

KINDERGARDEN had me a wreck!! I had read and recorded lots of scripture to speak over Lane, about Lane and for Lane...but it wasn't until I spoke scripture to myself, for myself, that things started to change! 

Someone gave me a great scripture and it really spoke to me(and even to the boys as I used what I needed for their memory verse for the week and know it blessed them too!) 

Psalm 28:7 The LORD is my strength and my sheild, my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped.

 You know what part is the best.... the end of that verse...

"my heart trusts in Him and I AM (Not need to be but I am already) helped!!"

 Day after day of reading that along with other scriptures I got to a new place…

I almost felt like I just needed to 

tear. the. bandaid. off. 

and get to the next step 

because the anticipation of it all had been so much!

 I felt The Lord calming me and saying that I may had just conquered the worst part……worrying

about how it all was going to go…

stewing, praying, not sleeping, crying, overthinking, drowning in sadness, etc etc etc! 

I just prayed that night before that I would be at the finish line in the morning instead of the starting line of grief! Even though tears that I knew would be shed and were (I had a burst out couldn’t talk cry that morning at the gym when someone said….you ready for today?! And then just a few little more tearsbut not nearly as bad as it could have been) I felt this crazy strength that morning inside me…it was His grace wave after wave washing over me and I’m just praying that those
waves will continue each and every day!!!

So let me back up a little bit to the few days before kindergarten. Like I said in my earlier post...Matt had the entire week off! Whoo hoo!! I am SO grateful! 

Monday he had a little alone time with Lane! He went and worked out and then came home to take Lane to the dentist (to get a crack in his tooth fixed!) then he invited his mom to meet him and Lane at our favorite little deli and have lunch together! Lane loved it so much! That special time with daddy and all that extra love from grandma made him feel on top of the world! (Doesn't Lane look so much like his grandma?! I hear that all the time! And it is so true! My hubby and Lane and my mother in law all have the same colic in their hairline too! Isn't that random!? I love little similarities like that so much! But my favorite thing that all three of them share is their smile!!! It goes straight across their faces and is just the best!!)

And then to top it all off just him and daddy went to the dam after lunch to watch boats together which he loved! AND they got two barges to honk which was like basically equivalent to going to Disney world in his little eyes! It was adorable and a great day for them!

 

The next day we got up and went to this Oregon splash pad that one of my best friends told us about! We have always wanted to try it and figured what better way to send out the summer than to spend it splashing around in water! 

We. Had. A. Blast!! First off the drive to Oregon is beautiful and one of our favorite roads to drive on. The trees are so beautiful and so is the water. The boys just love it too! Secondly it was free!!!! And on top of all that it was perfect weather! The park wasn't  too big or too small. It was just right for us and the ages of our kids but would be super fun for older ones too. Not only did they have a few great and amazing water areas, they had a great playground equipment right next to it that they could play on! Bathrooms and a pavilion right by and lots of grass with umbrellas too.  It was gorgeous weather and just so much fun!! Matt and I could sit and relax while the kids played (besides keeping Lyric safe on the equipment of course!) it was great. And of course our hearts were bursting watching how happy they were!! 

I packed a lunch just incase they got hungry and I'm glad that I did! At 1045 they were asking for lunch.  Lol! We stayed almost 2 full hours and left. They actually ate in the car on our way back towards home because we were looking for a place to go out to eat in Oregon but couldn't find one that sounded good or wasn't common.  We headed towards Dixon and the boys wanted to stop at the veterans park and see the Jets and helicopter and they loved it so much! By that time Matt and I were starving so we ended up at Buffalo Wild Wings and we ate lunch there and just ordered the boys some cinnamon bites and ice cream for dessert. Luke of course had fries and ketchup instead of dessert! (Lane has no desire for fries what so ever! But he loved the dessert! Luke how ever could eat a whole order of fries and almost did! Lol) Lyric loves all the tvs and commotion in that place and he too was enjoying bites of everything available.  (Little crumb dog) We then headed home and all took a long amazing nap! 

It was such a great day!!! I am so thankful we had that awesome day right before school started and I was soaking up as many "morning" hugs and kisses as I could get in!!  

So The first day of school...

 

It was the coldest day of the summer that day so surprisingly Lane wore jeans! 

His sun kissed happy face, and sun bleached shaggy blonde hair, and his new blue shirt had me and my hubby just melting!! And on top of all that cuteness he told us he wanted to be a farmer when he grew up so he could drive tractors and take care of animals when he grows up! Lol! So not what I thought! The kid does love tractors and animals but they aren't top of his normal list of excitement and imaginary play! And the tractors are often played with a tad less than the trains ans trucks and construction equipment! Never the less it was an adorable shocked and we adored taking his picture and our picture with him!! 

This picture makes me cry because I can just feel the love they have for each other looking at it. 

The best daddy, leader, encourager, teacher, and fun loving guy a kid could ask for!! 

The most blessed mommy on earth!(In my opinion 😉)

After dropping him off we went to get some coffee, our amazing sister in law offered to watch our little two so we could take him by ourselves, so we headed to get some coffee and breakfast (and bring her and my niece and nephew some for when we picked them up too!) It was a tall order of sadness with a side of pride and adoration! I'm so glad I got that short time to sit and stew with my hubby for A few minutes about what just happened!  While he was at school that first day (and each day to come) it was so quiet at home. Luke was so quiet and calm. Matt kept saying that's because we broke the band up! (So true!!) I don't think Luke was sad persay but he defiantly wasn't as rambunctious. (Which we all know Lane is a quiet instigator for Luke. Lane basically calls the shots...Luke do this Luke don't do that! It's a bitter sweet thing but I must say he has probably saved him more often than caused trouble. But Lane defiantly is the brains behind the crime most of the time!) And Luke really gets a bad rap for being the wilder sillier one but in reality he really is a calm kid away from his brothers! Like I truley think he will be a quiet kid in school.  And I do think he really did miss Lane! We all did! At one point I was putting clothes away in Lane and Lyric's room (again they share because #1& #2 in know way can calm their excited hearts together to go to bed!) and my hubby sighs loudly and says "it's. Too. Quiet." And I said I know baby and he says "I need to go back to work this is awful...I gotta work to take my mind off of this...I feel so bad for you and how it's going to be on Monday!" Ummmmm yessss dear I feel bad for me too! Lol! And I so get what he was saying and appreciate that he knows and understands the struggle!! (I think the boys and I will have to leave the house and go do something Monday!) 

We were biting at the bit to go and get him from school. We were so excited to pick him up. While he was gone the eye doctor called and told us his glasses were in. So we hurried from school over to Clinton to get them! And since the first day was an early out I packed his lunch in his school lunch box and he got to eat it in the car on the way over!

 He loved that!! 

After getting his glasses and many attempts to get them to sit right under his hair...we decided to cut his hair. We LOVE LOVE LOVE his hair long but with all the adjusting with his new glasses we did not want him to have to try so hard to get them to fit. It was even hard for me to pull all the hairs out and look just right as it was. 

Soooo on the first day of school (a huge deal in itself) our beautiful son went from long hair and no glasses, to short hair and glasses!

 

I love it both ways!! 

And can I just say....Lane is THEE best! Like no troubles going to school, listening, getting ready, going to bed, remembering the rules about his glasses, getting his haircut, etc etc etc! He was and is just down right obedient and truly wants to make me and Matt happy and we do NOT go one second taking it for granted! 

He is so amazing and WE ARE SO BLESSED!!! 

He has always and still does adapt amazingly!! 

He is meticulous and tedious and has cared so great for his glasses!! 

We had one lazy type morning while he was at school, one productive morning, and one fun morning where we rode our bikes out to the park and swang with the little two for a while! 

I'm not sure how I would have handled it all with out the presence of my amazing hubs but I have to say...as much as we missed him...

wait...honesty alert...

We did drive by the school play ground each day in hopes to see him out at recess....

The first few days truly wasn't quiet as torturous as I anticipated it to be (wave after wave after wave His grave was enough for us!) 

The second day of kindergarten we decided to take some "new" first day of school pics since the transformation was remarkable! 

He is just so cute! Oh and on the third day of kindergarten as we were getting ready to get in the car he said 

"MOOMM wait!!! What about taking my picture??" 

So...like how could I say no to that??? Lol! So here is day three! 

Tomorrow is day four. And a full week of school for Lane. He is only a half day student but does get to eat lunch there and he is so excited to bring his lunch in his new lunch box since last week we had him eat hot lunch to get use to that! 

Again I just have to say one more time...I am soooo grateful that my hubs had the week off!!! 

He is just soooo wonderful in every way!! 

And I'm even more thankful for an awesome God that loves me unconditionally, that inspite of my faults and failures, is constantly providing for me all that I need!! 

Even the strength to become a school mom!! 

 

Summer recap 2015

Well I figure I better get started on this post today that way I will probably finish it in two weeks since there is a lot of ground to cover! I don't want to leave out any awesome parts to our amazing summer recap!! 

I have been taking a break from social media(Facebook and Instagram) the past few weeks and plan to continue until Lane starts KINDERGARDEN! I felt like I was using it more often than I use to(and should) and while I most DEFIANLTY find it as such a benefit to stay connected with family and friends, find awesome encouragement through Great people and Christian sites, stay informed on events, get great resources for recipes, share photos, or even just get a good laugh...I felt like I needed to put myself in check over it! I use to only check it when my kids were napping or after they were in bed unless it was a quick pic post but it seemed as though I was checking it throughout the day if I had a free moment instead of using that free 15 seconds or 5 minutes better! PLUS my son is going to KINDERGARDEN and I knew that I definitely would not regret taking a vacation from distraction and spend every extra moment loving on him, looking at him, taking his picture, or just being in his presence those extra moments I was looking down. I am beyond thankful I have been a stay at home mom these past 5 years and truly haven't missed anything and now...I am about to be a mom that daily has to miss

 her son! 

I knew I wouldn't regret taking a break from it and I have learned so much! I have a fresh perspective on important things! And not because I took things for granted or spent countless hours on it each day ignoring my kids because that is absolutely the farthest thing from the truth, and not because someone told me too or because I was completing a challenge or a church fast (which are all good things) but because I wanted to experience it myself for my reasons and purpose!! 

I have throughly enjoyed every extra second...even if it was honking my arms and tiny semi trucks or diesel trains, or even baking more, getting more organized around the house, or really watching a movie with them instead of checking my phone while they did! I have enjoyed these extra moments beyond what I could ever explain!! 

So let's start the recap!! 

JUNE:

We started the month off with a perfect report from Luke's plastic surgeon at his annual check up!!(There is a previous post on this blog if you want more details!!) Here we are in Chicago after his Dr. Appointment!

We spent MANY(almost every) morning on our deck having breakfast(and lunch lots of dinners, snacks, and so on!) I probably have 50 pics of the boys being cute on our deck from this summer!!l

We didn't make it to a ton but the boys LOVED watching their big cousins play baseball and it was baseball nation at our house to start the summer off because of it! Lots and lots of hit balls in the back yard this summer! Lane started t-ball too and did awesome! So fun watching him learn and improve all summer long!

and here is littlest brother watching from the deck!! 

Lyric got his first owie:( He actually didn't cry hard at all! I was playing fetch with Louie with his tennis ball and Lyric loves to throw it to him...well Lyric started to walk away and I had the ball in my hand and our overly excited dog whipped around and knocked him right over! He tried to catch himself with his hands but smoked his forehead on our concrete patio! My poor precious sir! Looked way worse than it actually was! Here it is shortly after it happened! 

One of our favorite days of the whole summer was Union Pacific family days! It is always such a blast and the boys are in heaven the whole time!

Swimming was one of thee best parts of the whole year! I wrote a seperate post on the blog about why! Here is our first summer pool pic of the year and I think I have 500 more! Lol! Love their happy wet faces and just can't resist! 

Backyard swimming was equally as great and we did it daily! Morning, afternoon, and night!! 

 

We got Lukie a scooter(Lane got one in the spring for his birthday) and He does great on it! Rides around the block and on the park paths have been so much fun for our big two boys this year! 

What else says summer besides hosting a garage sale and lemonade stand?! Here we are! 

Our beautiful and amazing nephew Cohen turned 3!! What a fun party!! 

Can't forget all the not so fun stuff...well baby check up and shots for Lyric! He has a great support system!

Even though we know they are far from being able to mow the yard... a very patient daddy always lets them learn and help!

This was Lanes first day of t-ball...he got put on the Orioles and had so much fun! 

Our town did something new this year called "Touch a Truck" at a local church! It was awesome to say the least!! Happiest boys ever!!

 

We had a great Father's Day for the greatest daddy there is!! 

Bible school was amazing! It was Luke's first year and he loved it!! And Matt and I both helped in the first grade class room and were in the play at the end of the week!! 

One of my best friends came home from Las Vegas that week too and we had SO much fun with her and her beautiful girls Carrigan and Bianca! So hard to pic what picture to share because there was so many good moments, play dates, mommy night out, birthday party etc...

The boys Christian preschool had a petting zoo on the last day of kids blast that was great! They did an hour and a half of kids blast three Wednesday mornings in June! 

And I spent those minutes snuggling my sweet baby Lyric!! 

Lane's first t-ball game!!

 

We had MULTIPLE frogs that Lane tried to house and survive this summer! This one's name was cutie pie! He lasted the longest! Died a painful death being left on the blazing sun of his cozy couple truck bed though! Poor thing!! 

What's summer without lots of icecream and frozen yogurt trips!?!?

I took the boys to the sawmill museum one day with one of my best friends and her sister and all their kids!! It was great! 

June(well the whole summer really) had many of these moments! Towels and or pjs post pool/sprinkler time! 

JULY:

We actually started July off with a date night!! Woot woot!! We had one the last week of May and I don't think we got to take one at all in June. 

Here we are on our way to the quad cities! It is always so so amazing to get some time with just each other! I loved everything minute!! 

After a lot of overtime for Matt in June we decided to stay home and just hang as a family on the 4th! My sister and brother in law and nephew came for a super fun cookout at our house that night!

 

The boys LOVE to play at the park and we go to at least one park a few times a week! We went to Rockwood a lot this month and had quite a few picnics there!! 

Can't forget the low key moments of just playing semis at home! Those are just as special! 

And of course walks walk and MORE walks! We walk daily! Sometimes just around town, often to a park, and a couple times I let Lane ride his scooter or bike next to me as I walked the little two on the stroller! 99%of the time I wear Lyric and push the big two(and bring the dog! lol!!) It's quite a show and I love it and them so much! We have the best talks on our walks!! 

Oh and occasionally I wear Luke...he is under the weight limit and it doesn't hurt but I DEFIANLTY prefer Lyric on my back for long walks. 

One of my favorite pictures at the park!! Such happy brothers who love each other so so much!! I am one blessed mommy!! 

I took this picture of Luke after a hard fun day of playing while he napped! Love his dirty sleepy naptime face! Such good naps especially in the summer!! 

We took the boys to the I80 truck show(and our nephew too!!) it was a rainy day but so worth getting wet! They loved it!! 

This was just one random July Sunday morning before church...I just love their different expressions here!! 

Another playing at home moment (milestone) I want to be sure to remember...Lyric trying to drive his car on the counter like his big brothers!! 

We have been working this summer with Lane on how to tie his shoes! He doesn't have it yet but he is getting closer!!

 

My three little fish!! 

Then the very next time Luke decided to ditch the life jacket! So proud of them both! Lane loves going underwater and looking around too!! And Lyric is the most chill water baby ever! He will sit over an hour in the raft before wanting out! Love him so! 

We met Poppy and Cohen down at the 4H fair one morning  too!! I love this picture of my dad with his grandsons!

This was probably the best morning of the whole summer...Lane woke up around 515 (he usually walks up by 6-630 at the very latest! 545 isn't that odd for him) but that day was too early I told him to climb in our bed and shut his eyes...he fell right to sleep and slept next to me until Luke woke up at 6am! He looked so beautiful! None of our boys ever sleep with us so it was super unexpected that he fell back to sleep and sooo amazing! Usually in the mornings they snuggle in bed with us, act silly, watch tv, or the iPad but sleep!? Not ever! I am so glad I snapped a picture of this memory!! 

Just a week day picnic and duck feeding with momma at Rockwood park! I always sing to them "just me and my boys just me and my boys"!!

Lyric learned to climb up onto Lane's bed this month and he LOVES IT!! 

And his brothers love it too! They love wrestling already! Yikes!! 

Lyric turned 17 months old in July!! Hard to believe it! He is growing up so fast!! And is soooo amazing!! They all are!!

Our beautiful niece turned 3 on July 27th and we got to go swimming with her that morning! The boys loved swimming with their cousins and we loved spending part of the day with the birthday girl!! She is just thee best!! 

The next day my mom took us and my sister and her son to Crystal Lake in rockfalls! The boys LOVED the "beach"!! Ammy made it so special for the boys buying them new sand toys and yummy snacks! Well they didn't leave the water but they did enjoy the snacks on the way home and the toys in their sandbox a ton! It was an awesome summer memory I will never forget! They talk about it non stop!

My dad and brother in law Jason spent one morning with the big boys teaching them how to pick corn at a friends farm! They loved every single second!! Their excitement before and after was so priceless!! And we loved the sweet corn! 

Even though we spend 95% of our time outside in the summer we do save a little time for doing crafts!

These boys love to "go to work!" Always mommy "can we play construction site!"

One of my favorite post pool pics...I wish Lyric would have been looking too! 

On the last day in July we did put the kids to bed and then went out for two hours while my mom sat here while they slept to wish our good friend a happy 30th birthday at her party at A pizza place called Manny's! It was a quick night that hardly serviced as a date but even 10 minutes feels like a date sometimes so the little bit of time was amazing! (Summer nights! 8pm and it was still super light out!) 

August 

1st-was one of THEE best days of the summer!! Started with Lane's last Tball game and him getting the cutest medal that he was SOOOO excited for!

Followed by a mommy and son date for me and Lane! We went to a back to school blast that had a scavenger hunt, games, prizes, and so much more!! Then we went to the park, had ice cream, saw semi's and watched trains! ALL of his favorite things to do! He kept saying this is so fun mom, and just me and my girl! I could barely keep it together! The funniest thing he said was after a mile long scooter ride he says "whew mom I'm getting sweat(not sweaty) wanna go get some ice cream?" Like son...did u just ask me out on a mini date?! And how cute is "getting sweat" lol!! Here is a few pics of the day! I am so in love with this child(and his little brothers!) and I am beyond grateful for any alone time I get with each one!! 

And while this may seem a little random here is a picture of my amazing hubby playing at church one Sunday this summer! I am so thankful for Him and all he does and I LOVE that He is a musician and that he plays for our church and I love this picture I snapped and I especially LOOOVVEE him!!

My mom and I went school shopping for Lane one night in the Quad Cities and had the best time! She spoiled him with so much stuff and his favorite was his new back pack Ammy and Poopy bought him!! He was/is so excited!!! (One of the many heart stood still moments for me)

Oh and Luke and Lyric did not get left out of the deal! Lukie got some new shirts for preschool and all three got matching outfits and here is a picture of Luke with his new "mashems" I got him that night at target!!  I love his sweet happy face!! 

I never get tired of taking pictures of my summer boys maxed out in their big comfy chairs because it is so routine at our house! One show before we go read before naptime and bed time each day...and each day I can't help but pause and look at them(and usually take a pic because I merely can't help myself! They're just so amazing)

Here is Lane at his KINDERGARDEN physical at our pediatrician office! He is 4 FEET TALL exactly! Isn't that crazy!? Like his dad is 6 foot 2...so in 5 years he grew 4 whole feet but by the time he is 31 he could only grow approximately 2 more feet!?! It's so true how they say you develop the most from the ages 0-5! Oh and he was 45lbs of pure perfection! 

Each morning this summer we have done "bible time" at breakfast. Each boy gets a bible (they usually want the big ones...mine and daddy's) and we open it to whatever chapter we are reading out of and Lane is always like where's my name mommy!? Lol! Sorry bud your name isn't in the bible and we have read out of the book of Luke a lot! Anyways and we read a short bible story...they always want to hear about Jonah and the whale, and especially Goliath, or Jesus calming the water! We have a great book with childrens bible stories in it that is two pages and asks one question at the end and has pictures! Perfect for their attention span! Trying to instill in them to pause in the mornings and spend time in God's word before we start the day! 

Daddy got to take the big boys up to the firestation one night this summer and Uncle Nate let them look all around and try on his clothes! They had a blast! They haven't stopped talking about it since!!! 

Here was Lane bright and early the next morning putting out fires!!

We had a great marching band going one day and the boys were so adorable!! And daddy was too!!

Lyric had his first big boy haircut and it is just waaayyy too much to handle! He is so amazing!! We can barely stand how adorable he is!!! 

We got to go see Papa Goose one Saturday and it was so wonderful! The boys love him so much and so do we!! They were such little angels and were totally spoiled by Papa and Jean!! 

Lyric officially adopted the name "crumb dog" or "crumb" or "crumby" because the kid just loves eating all the time!! Even spilled goldfish off the floor etc!! 

Our small group had a cookout one night and it was sooo much fun! They have the most amazing farm and the boys LOVED holding (and chasing) their chickens! 

Ammy and Poppy moved into their new house this summer the boys did a great job at helping during the move aka...breaking in the place!! 

Lane and Luke had their first night of tumbling last week and were so excited!! Here they are getting ready to go!

Here is crumb dog in the car waiting patiently eating his toes!!;)

Here is Lane at his backpack night! He is so big!! Our hearts were bursting with love and excitement for him and heavy with sadness at the same time!

There was so many doctor appointments to get ready for school! The boys did great at them! So much to expect three little boys to sit still and be quiet for so long but with lots of treats they really did power through more quiet than I expected!! 

Unfortunately Lane's eye doctor did not go as well as we thought it would. He has never shown any sign of any eye troubles what so ever and even a few weeks ago at his pediatrician appointment he read all the pictures and letters great and they said he looked good! Well after a two hour long appointment and through examination it turns out he has a very stong stigmatism! Focusing on things far away are very hard for him and I was shocked on how hard it was for him to read off that screen!! He also has a very large optic nerve...which isn't a bad thing and doesn't cause damage to his eyes or anything it just increases his risk for glaucoma when he is old. Matt has the same thing! Needless to say here he is trying on new frames! He does look super adorable and I know we will adjust to his new look and grow to be so in love with it but truly it is kind of hard for us to wrap our minds around him having glasses! Neither of us do(well Matt has occasional ones) but Lane's will be full time! And he is just going to look so different! I shed a few tears mainly because of all the change that has been happening up in here!!  But I am so incredibly thankful for how healthy and wonderfully made our precious boy is! I was quickly humbled after my tears!! 

Swimming with daddy is always so much fun!! 

I am so incredibly thankful for this summer! We cherished every single moment! And the best thing about the end of the summer is daddy has the whole last week off!! I am so grateful that he will get to be around for the first week of school!(not sure how I'd make it through with out him!! Lol! He really does make every hard thing better!!)  And we plan on doing a day trip and going to the fair of course too! 

I truly feel like I enjoyed all the amazing moments with my beautiful family even more than usual! My heart is so full!!