There was a horse in our house!

As I mentioned before, it was my nephew's 1st birthday on Sunday. One of his gifts was a large (play) horse from my parents. We were able to purchase it at Costco for them a couple of days prior to the party... which meant that Jonathan was able to have some fun with it before we had to give it over! He sure had a blast with it- and so didn't his dad.

He's done good!

My incredibly thoughtful husband brought these home for me yesterday for no reason other than to say "I love you." The picture doesn't do the flowers justice... but I just wanted to let you know that I am blessed with a man who loves me well!

Illini Family

My husband graduated from University of Illinois and is VERY proud that he did! Today, we celebrated my nephews 1st birthday and the attire for the party was sports wear. So, we were able to pull together an incredibly coordinated outfit as a family. (Catherine's outfit is compliments of Chris's sister, Amy. Isn't it adorable??)


GO FIGHTING ILLINI!

Future baker?

As many of you know I LOVE to bake. Lately, I have been making quick breads, muffins, cookies, etc... quite frequently. I just can't resist warm Pumpkin Spice Bread with tea on a beautiful fall afternoon.

When I pull out the Kitchen Aid mixer, Jonathan is quick to grab a chair and help. We made chocolate chip cookies the other night for Chris. YUMMY! I think that he is going to be gourmet chef when he grows up!

Fall Fun

Oh, how I love the fall! The colors are beautiful, sweaters come out of the closet, Starbuck's sells their Pumpkin Spice lattes and there are leaf piles to play in!

This past week Jonathan and I ventured outside to rake some leaves- for some "exercise" and fun. We had a great time!

My dad and his motorcycle

Yes, it is true, after years of yearning for and contemplating the purchase of one, a few weeks ago my dad purchased a Honda Shadow! He is having a grand time riding around on it in these beautiful Fall days. He can't seem to convince my mom to go on a ride, but the rest of the family is excited to go with him. So, this past weekend my brother and sister-in-law took a ride with him.

My dad and Quinn ready for their "ride" together.

FUN family weekend

This past weekend my side of the family conveigned down in Colorado Springs for the celebration of my sister's, Anna, birthday. She requested fondue for her birthday dinner... and my mom did an INCREDIBLE job of making the yummy meal of filet mignon, chicken, potatoes, carrots, broccoli, bread and of course cheese fondue. Dessert consisted of chocolate fondue with pound cake and fruit. We had a grand time as a family and celebrating my sister turning 22!

Anna with Catherine

My sister was also recently engaged to a wonderful man, Justin. They are planning to get married next October! YEAH! Congrats to Anna and Justin. Her fiancee is a very holy man but is also very tall... 6'5''- he is "squatting" in this picture. he he

Here are all the cousins, as of now. :-) (Padriac is on the left and will be turning 1 this week!) Do you know how hard it is to get 2 toddlers and a baby to look at the camera at the same time??

Padriac and Jonathan playing together.

Padriac LOVES to be outside.

I finally got a picture...

... of Catherine smiling!! She does smile quite a bit, but I have a difficult time catching it on camera! So, here it is:

Everyday Life

Between all the fun activites of the past month we have just been hanging out and getting caught up in the little things around the house. So, here are some "everyday life pics!" Enjoy.

Me and kiddos

Jonthan sure loves his little sister, Catherine! He is so good to her.

While Chris and I were playing cards he kept Jonathan occupied.

Chris "walking" Catherine to sleep.

Catherine is now 3 months old! She is getting bigger and a lot more aware of her surroundings. She has rolled over a couple of times, started cooing and has been giggling some. She has been a lot of fun to have in our lives.

Trip to Illinois

While we were out for Bridget and William's wedding, we traveled down to Springfield, IL to visit Chris's family. We were welcomed at Clay's (Chris's oldest brother) home with his family for two nights. It had been quite some time since we had seen everyone. It was fun to introduce Catherine and to just hangout and relax with everyone.

Jonathan with all of his cousins on the Kuetemeyer side- minus one! They all had a grand time playing together!

One of the days we were there, we spent with Curt (Chris's next oldest brother) and his family! We walked to a park, ate some lunch and played with lots of toys.

Jonathan with his cousin Emily at the park.

A big thank you to the Kuetemeyer's for hosting us and taking time out of their busy schedule to hang out! We had a good time!

My Birthday

Another fun activity this past month was my birthday! I turned the BIG 29... only 1 more year to 30! CRAZY- because I certainly do not feel that old!!

The evening of my birthday, my family came over for pizza and yummy ice cream cake. We were also able to celebrate my brother's and sister-in-law's birthdays too. It was fun! Though, Quinn was unable to attend. So, we celebrated her birthday in spirit with her.

Then, later that weekend Chris and I went on a wonderful date, compliments of my sister who watched the kiddos for a few hours. We were able to go shopping at the mall- which is something that I have not done in a looooooong time and get some drinks and appetizers.

What a wonderful weekend!

An Entire Month Has Passed...

... since I have posted anything! But, I must say that we have been very busy in the last several weeks with a lot of fun activities. The first is that we have been in and able to attend 3 different weddings. The first we attended were our dear friends, William and Bridget. Chris has known William since they were in elementary school and was honored as Best Man. I have known Bridget for 6 years and was honored to be a Bridesmaid. The wedding, was the most beautiful and tasteful wedding I have ever been in or at, took place in Indianapolis. The four of us flew out for a long weekend... and the kiddos did FANASTIC on the plane trips. We had a wonderful time celebrating with them, meeting lots of their family and seeing friends we have not seen in quite some time. Unfortunately, we were not able to get a family picture of all of us dressed up... but take my word on it, we looked GOOD! he he

Me with Bridget right before she walked down the isle!


The second wedding- which I did not attend but Chris was honored with being an usher- was in Lincoln, Nebraska. Neal was a student in Chris's bible study during his time on campus in FOCUS at UNL. They have remained good friends and Chris had a wonderful time celebrating with their family and friends he had not seen in quite some time.


Jonathan looking good in his vest and tie!

The third wedding- which was on the same weekend as Neal's- was Cynthia and Joshua. Cynthia was in my bible study during my time in FOCUS at UNL. After she graduated from UNL 4 years ago, she became a FOCUS missionary and met her now husband, Joshua, who was also a missionary. It was a beautiful wedding ceremony and I was excited that I was able to attend and celebrate with them.

Congratulations to all of our friends! Enjoy the married life! Please be assured of our continued prayers.

Jonathan enjoying some yummy lemonade- his "reward" for being SO GOOD during the wedding mass we attended. But, don't they both look so cute dressed up??