Speeding through September

First things first. Happy birthday to Luke! The big 3-0 this year! I'm officially married to an old man. : )

We spent a lot of time at the beach in September. The kids are getting so good in the water!

 

Noah is four and LOVING school. His teacher's name is Mrs. Clarke. There are 11 kids in his class. His favorite things are the sand table and the playground. He always comes home smiling! Noah has a precious spirit. He's mindful of others -- almost every day, he brings home a flower for me that he picked from the playground!

Our little Abby isn't so little anymore! She's potty training and doing an awesome job! She's very "motherly". Loves to play with baby dolls and "help" with Julia. She loves to go to Noah's school. She adores her daddy and gets excited every time she hears a motorcycle, thinking its him coming home from work!

And here's sweet Julia. She's been a challenging baby (she cries SO much!) but is still a blessing. : ) I already miss my newborn baby. She's grown up so much recently! She's pulling herself up in her crib and crawling around wherever she wants to go. She and Abby already have a special relationship. It's wonderful to hear them laugh together!

Fast Forward to August

I love those moments where the kids are having a fantastic time playing with one another. Here's one of those times I managed to capture. "Bugsby" (the big green caterpillar) was making some kind of funny noise when you touched it to a certain spot on the book, and Noah and Abby thought it was hilarious....obviously.

We visited the beach a couple times this month. (A trip that's definitely getting easier!) Here's Julia hanging out under the umbrella.

Traditionally, my parents plan a vacation for our family every year, but since Luke couldn't get away this year, they all came here for a week. Here's Mom with Julia (7 months here.)

We went down to a jetty in Venice right after a tropical depression had gone through the Gulf. The ocean was more rough than I've ever seen it. It was so windy! And lots of spray. This picture was taken BEFORE a giant wave crashed up over the jetty and knocked Noah and my sister off their feet!

 Visiting Daddy at Agape Flights.

 Here's my Dad with Julia at the house they rented.

 And here's the highlight of the vacation.....the pool. The boys spent every available moment here!

 While everyone was here, Noah celebrated his FOURTH birthday. That seems impossible!

 His special present from me and Daddy. He loved it! (And seemed very surprised even though he had already seen it!)

 The gigantic tub of cheese balls we decimated in a week's time.

 Sweet Julia waiting very patiently for lunch.

 Noah and Abby getting off a ride at Busch Gardens.

 Awwwww.......here's Noah's first day of preschool. He's in a three day a week program at Venice Christian School. He absolutely loves it! He's had so much fun meeting new kids and getting to experience special things.

 This is actually the second day of school. It was raining on the first day, but I wanted an outside shot. : )

 Abby took her afternoon nap on the kitchen floor on day. She was pretending to put her baby to sleep, but she actually fell asleep herself. Whoops!

These girls have had lots of time to play together with Noah in school!

Little Agape Blip

Luke's job with Agape Flights is going well. He's been very, very busy. For now, it seems there is no end to his work! He's still making the weekly flights down to the Caribbean.

 There's a little airport in Les Cayes, Haiti that always has kids standing along the outside of the fence. I've gotten into the habit of sending a little treat for them. Here's Luke handing them out.

He's getting them trained to line up and sit down. : ) And they're teaching him little bits of Creole.

The Rest of July

Noah took swim lessons this summer -- they definitely boosted his confidence in the water. He'll swim around like a little fish now. He (and Abby, too!) even go off the diving board!

Our Florida Fall

Typically, fall is my favorite time of year, but so far it doesn't seem that different from summer here in Florida! Our temperatures are cooling off (which is nice!) but I miss the changing leaves and apple picking. I guess we'll have to make a visit up north to see some of ya'll next year!

So.....about this blog.....I know it's been awhile. And I know I'm constantly saying that. I'll try to give the quick version of the last few months, and maybe stay caught up after that??? But maybe (okay, probably!) not!

June

This one is for Casey......and everyone else who eagerly anticipates and patiently waits for these updates which are so few and far between!

I feel like I'm constantly trying to get a decent picture of all three kids at the same time.....but it is SO hard! We have a newsletter coming up, so Sunday I was taking pictures after church. This is the best I came up with. : ) If only I knew how to photoshop!

Here's a previous attempt.


Here's Noah building a Marble Works creation.

He has such a look of concentration!

Noah is officially all signed up for preschool next year. I can't believe it's time for that! I think Abby's going to feel lost on the days he is away from us. We took Noah in for a little tour last week, and he was completely in awe. He kept walking around the room getting excited about every detail!

Luke bought him a trenching shovel to take to the beach. Noah loves to dig in the sand!

Here's little Abby. She's starting to learn her letters. I haven't been nearly as diligent in teaching Abby as I was Noah. But better late than never, I guess!

Abby is a little diva one day and the next day she's all tomboy. Here the kids dug a mudhole in the backyard.

Abby's latest craze is playing dress up. She has a box of little dresses, gloves, purses, jewelry and......shoes. Abby has always been a shoe thief. It doesn't matter where we are -- if she sees and empty pair of shoes, she'll put them on. I don't know how many times I've had to pull a strangers shoes off her feet at the beach. So when it comes to playing dress up, it's all about the shoes for Abby.

Abby is a great sister. She loves Julia very much. If Julia's ever crying, Abby will come and tell me over and over until I pick her up. She loves to "help" me any way she can.

Little Julia is getting sweeter every day. She doesn't fuss like she used to. Actually, she's quite content now. She cut her bottom two front teeth.

She has "favorite" toys. A little blue ball with holes all over it and some plastic keys. She's so close to being able to sit up on her own.

Here's how she sucks her fingers. Both Noah and Abby were thumb suckers, but Julia developed her own style. She's become very good at putting herself to sleep -- thanks to this finger sucking!

She's really enjoyed her jumper. She spends a lot of time here! We started giving her cereal. She wasn't thrilled in the beginning, but over the last week, she's really gotten the hang of it!

Thanks to everyone for asking about our kids. They bring us an immense about of joy -- we're happy to share them with you!