Category: Photography

Adrian’s Half Birthday is today! We are going to enjoy some ice cream and potato chips that he picked out.  We are also going to watch a movie that Adrian choses.

The other day Allan was helping the kids get all of their bikes tuned up.  Adrian mentioned that he did not like his tricycle anymore.  He made it sound like it leaned a lot to one side. Allan told him to bring it to him and he would try to fix it.  When we went to look at it, we discovered that the handle bars had come off!  Of course it leaned to one side!  We took the tricycle to Opa to see if he can weld it together for Adrian.

Mark found the training wheels and put them on Audrey’s old bike.  The bike is a little big for Adrian and he has trouble peddling, but he likes to try and he does a good job.

This is one of the kids favorite toys at the playground.  It is sort of like a merry-go-round.  The kids start on the green bar, and see how many times they can walk around it at a normal speed without falling.  It is a lot harder than it looks! As you move on the wheel, the wheel is turning also, so if you want to experience being a hamster on a wheel, this is a great toy to try.

I can usually get around it once or twice.  With help, Adrian can do it a few times.  Mark is the champion and we have to set a limit on how many times he can go around. His challenge is to start going faster without falling.  Andrea and Audrey both do very well, but their coordination is not as good as Mark’s yet.

When the children are finished showing off, they love to lay down on it, and have someone push them around in circles. Care to join us one day and see how much fun this toy is?

I have trouble carrying Adrian for his “midnight bathroom break”, so Allan has been taking him.  But Allan is away for a few days.

On Sunday night, Mark was having trouble sleeping because Daddy was gone.  He crawled out of bed and took Adrian for me.  Mark could not figure out how to get Adrian back into bed, so just plopped over and Adrian crawled over him to a comfortable place.

Last night, I had given Mark permission to read in bed for a little bit.  He is reading Tolkien’s The Silmarillion. It is a collection of Tolkein’s work that his son put together after Tolkien died.  Mark is enjoying the book, but wishes it had more details in it. (I have not read the book, but it was recommended to Mark. I think his response about details is funny because it is a thick book!  He says the battle scenes are only a sentence or two long.)

When I went to get Adrian, Mark was waiting for me and jumped out of bed and helped his little brother for me!

The kids were helping me clean out the garden for winter.  We did not have a very good garden, except for all the mystery squash that grew out of the compost pile, on our fence and around the yard.

While they were helping, the girls found this huge toad that Adrian really liked.  He played with it for a long time!

Happy to Birthday to Andrea.  She is nine years old today! Andrea loves pretty things, getting flowers from her boyfriends (she has a few very special ones), kittens, helping others, playing with her siblings and riding her bike.

Andrea is a hard worker. She loves to do things around the house.  She is learning to bake and makes wonderful cookies.

She likes school most of the time.  Reading is hard for Andrea, but she is improving a lot! She loves math.

Andrea loves to be outside.  She enjoys riding her bike and exploring the woods with her brother.  Right now they are making a fort in the woods together. Yes, they know what poison ivy looks like!

I am so thankful that God gave Andrea to our family!