Vegetable Gargen

A week before Easter, Chris was so wonderful (as he always is) and took a few days to build me a raised garden... so that I could try my hand at gardening. It has been a really fun adventure!

I decided to plant carrots, onions (shallots and red), lettece and butternut squash. In two other side pots I planted strawberries, green beans and peppers. Overall everything has been fairly successful. I did learn, though, that since lettuce grows so fast to plant it in waves... so that I don't have 15 heads of lettece all at once. he he My green beans didn't do as well as I would have liked, but we are reaping the benefits (or soon to be) of everything else. Can't wait for next year!

Chris and the kiddos working hard at building the raised bed:

What we thought would be a couple hour and fairly cheap (under $100) project... didn't turn out to be so. But, isn't that the way it is with all DIY projects?! (when you don't know what you are doing, apparently) We were truly thankful for our neighbor, who used to own his own landscaping company. He stepped in a few times to save us from making major mistakes, lending us tools that didn't know exisited and finally, also helped us install a drip line- which was pheonomal so that I didn't have to water everyday! The finished product with some almost finished produce!

Illinois Travels

At the end of June, we were able to make a 10 day trip out to Illinois to visit Chris's family. We had a nice time hanging out, catching up, eating GREAT food, enjoying one another's company and finding fun things to do with the kiddos!

Of course it was HOT, HOT, HOT while we were visiting. So, one of the things Mary, Chris's mom, got set up was this awesome waterslide for Father's Day. Chris's brother, Clay, and his three kiddos came down for the day and everyone had a great time playing on it:
Grandma Mary always has yummy treats to give! The kids enjoyed lots of ice cream- which was a great treat in the hot weather:


Aunt Amy- Chris's sister- brought her dog, Chloe, over to see the kids. Jonathan LOVED petting Chloe, even though she is bigger than he is:

We also took the kids to a children's museum in town:

Grandma Mary also demonstrated her incredible artistic skills. The kids were mesmorized and had a blast:

And, our good friend's from Chicago and Madison also made the treck down to Champaign just to visit with us! Here is one of the family's who graced us with their presence. Grace, their oldest daughter, is our goddaughter- so it was nice spending time with her and her parents:

Thank you, Mary and Dave, for hosting us for 10 days! We look back upon our time with you in fondest memories. We look forward to future trips!

Catherine is now 2 years old!

At the beginning of last month, Catherine turned 2 years old! We had a grand time celebrating the gift of her life, both on 4th of July with some family, and on her actual birthday- the 6th. She had fun eating cake and opening presents!

We love you, Catherine! Happy Belated Birthday!

I'm Here #2!

Okay, I told you last time that I had lots of wonderful pictures to share regarding our fantastic summer excursions... but just have not done it. But, I think that my "excuse" this time is a good one. Chris and I were able to spend 9 days in Fatima, Portugal from August 2-10 together on a pilgrimage! So, getting ready to leave the country for that extended period of time and coming back and adjusting to "normal" life has taken some time. But, here I am again! YEAH!

We went to Portugal with a group of about 50 others- from both FOCUS and the Matthew Kelly Foundation. It was grand! We met some wonderful people and got to know some of Chris's co-workers even better. Chris and I also got to experience another culture and being challenged to grow spiritually. It was an opportunity of a lifetime. We are truly thankful and blessed that we were able to go!

A TREMENDOUS thank you goes out to Mary, Chris's mom, and my parents for watching the kiddos while we were gone!! The kiddos had a grand time with their grandparents.

For those who are unfamiliar with Fatima, Portugal, it is believed that Mary, the Mother of God, appeared to three little shepherd children in 1917. She had some profound and challenging messages to pass along to the world through them. So, most of our trip consisted of visiting some of the sites of the apparitions, visiting the little shepherds home and listening to talks from Matthew Kelly and Curtis Martin on our Catholic faith. Not only did we spend time praying, but also eating wonderful food, meeting some fun people and seeing a couple of other cities in Portugal:

Behind Chris, is the first Cathedral that they built after the apparitions stopped.

The cathedral at duskThe chapel that was built at the site of the last apparition in 1917The newer cathedral that was built across the square from the first, at dusk, this one seats 9,000 people!Chris and I overlooking the town of FatimaChris and I in LisbonOn the last day of our trip, the group went to the beach- Nazare, Portugal- for some fun and relaxation. It turned out to be a beautiful day!

Here are some of the wonderful people we met and spent time with

Breckenridge

Over Memorial Day weekend my side of the family was able to get together to celebrate my dad's 60th birthday in Breckenridge! The memories left from the days together are fantastic. The weather was perfect and hanging out with everyone was even better. There were so many fun things to do and see!

The place we stayed had some great pools, so we spent a lot of time there with the kiddos:

One of the kids favorite things to do at the pool was jump off the side to Chris... we can't begin to count how many times he caught them!

Grammy did bestow some extra love on the grandkids, warming them up after swimming.

There was a great park down the road that Justin, my sister's husband, had so much at! (The kids did too! he he) Justin was so wonderful playing with the kids... it was cute.

Auntie Anna and Uncle Justin playing at the park- without kids this time!

There were some great walks and hikes in and around the town of Breckenridge that everyone got to partake of.

Then, there was just good old hanging out, talking and eating good food:

Thanks, Dad, for having a birthday and celebrating with us! We love you!

Camping

Chris has had the itching to take Jonathan camping and fishing for about a year now. The two things he was waiting for was for Jonathan to get a bit older and to accumlate some of the gear (minor detail, he he). A few weeks ago, it worked out that he was finally able to make the venture... and they had a grand time! Jonathan can't wait to go back.

There were a couple of very small hiking trips:

Jonthan couldn't wait to sleep in the tent, apparently. Chris had built a nice fire to roast hot dogs and marshmellows, but Jonathan wasn't too interested. He was more excited to sleep next to Daddy for the night! Too cute!Here are some of the fishing adventure pictures:They didn't catch anything, but it was sure fun trying:Most of all, Jonathan and Chris just had a blast together!

Swimming

My kids LOVE to swim! It's great that we live right across the street from a nice pool- of which we visit quite frequently. But, before that pool was open we purchased a little pool for the backyard. It has been great for when other kiddos come over for a visit or when I don't want to make the venture to the bigger pool: