Happy 1st Birthday, Elodie!

Our sweet grand daughter turned ONE
this summer!

Andrew is photobombing!
I love having the bigs here at our home!
It makes my heart so full to spend time with them!

And to have all 3 grand daughters here...!

Well, there just isn't anything better than that!

Her Daddy helped her open her birthday gifts!

Attempting to put on her new sunglasses from her cousins, Emily and Ali!

She is such a laid back, happy one year old!

Emily is pretty certain she's one of the big kids now!

(I need some of Katie's pics of my three grand babies together!)

Hint, hint!

HaPpY BiRtHdAy

to YoU!

This was the loud and more active party!

I'm thinking this little one is 

well loved!

Mom and Dad are beaming!

May all your wishes come true!

So thankful to be able to celebrate together!

And this was the quieter party on her actual day!

Where we could focus on our sweet

baby granddaughter!

Mom, Dad, the birthday girl and both sets of grandparents were there!

She LOVES Pete the Cat!

This is her tired look!

It doesn't get any cuter than this!

Her Momma made her a special cake 

with all healthy ingredients!

She was tentative...

at first!

But after tasting how delicious it was...

And seeing her birthday 

guests reactions,
as she

dug

deeper-

she couldn't help herself...

and she went for it!

Of course,

the crowd
(grandparents and parents)

are cheering her on!

She...We...
are loving every minute of this!

Sorry, so many pics...

but which one would I leave out?

And...

she is done with all this celebrating!
Her tummy is full...
she's beyond exhausted...
and

it's time for a bath or two or three or ...

more!

Good Night sweet girl-
enjoy being ONE!

Happy Father's Day Hubby (2017)!

 Yes... this post is from June 18th, 2017!

I just can't jump into the present and forget so much of the past

(meaning this last summer)! 

We just happen to have the best Dad and husband EVER!

And he needs to be celebrated!

He is selfless and thoughtful, generous and kind!

He puts others needs ahead of his own every. single. day, 

year after year after year!

He keeps the cards that the children make for him!

He is a bit sentimental and well, 

we try to watch as few sad movies as possible!

He used to love to golf but then he had 21 children

and somehow his golf game 

wasn't quite as good as it used to be...
He still tries to get out on the golf course occasionally...

It was a wonderful day and I probably have more pics

BUT

I can't find them right now!

We went to church, had brunch, 

watched the US Open (per special request)

and then Matt, Caitlin and Elodie came over for dinner...

we think...

because we have no pics to prove it...

and we can't remember!!!

So sad... this is what happens
when you have a bundle of kiddos
and you're a seasoned parent!

You blissfully
FORGET!

No wonder I need a blog!
If nothing else, it's to remind me
of our LIFE!

 Anyways...

it was a wonderful day celebrating a wonderful husband and father!

And it was Matt's(our oldest son) first Father's Day, too!
Gonna have to look for those other pics!

Garden of the Gods and Pikes Peak!

It was soooo bright outside

that no one could keep their eyes open for the pic!

We even tried closing our eyes, counting to three-

opening them and snapping the pic!

Didn't quite work for some of us... oh well!

Today was actually Ava's B-day

but because we are trying to make our celebrations a bit more low key,

we made it clear that this was a family outing and not for a birthday celebration.

With this many kiddos that LOVE to have fun,

we found the birthdays were slowly

getting more involved and more expensive.

Each child was trying to top their last birthday celebration...

ummm, no!

This is not the direction we want to go in.

We want to celebrate our kids, give them some gifts 

and make sure that they feel special 

and loved on their birthday.

The children had never been to Colorado Springs,

so they were all excited to see

the sites!
(This was in June 2017)

We started out at Red Rocks Nature Center!

It really was quite beautiful!

Happy Birthday Ava!

The rock formations are spectacular!

We did not get out of the car to hike

because we were short on time.

We will definitely be back to hike!

Or in our case maybe
a slow walk and a tiny bit of climbing
for some of the kids?

 Then we had a yogurt in Manitou Springs!

The shop owner took one look at us and thought...
Oh no...
but we quickly got our yogurts and stepped outside!
She exhaled...

Then it was off to
Pikes Peak!

We took the cog train to the top!

It was an hour ride up to the top of the mountain!

Sarah and Ellie sat with this nice couple!

They pointed out sights to see as we climbed the mountain.

We put kids and adults next to the window...
that have a tendency to make good choices!

Although everyone would have been fine...
I get a little worried when I see open windows and 16 children!

The mountains were beautiful!

We could see all the way to Kansas...
Hello to our Kansas friends!

Well, at least that is what they told us!

The cog train fills up just about everyday,
so we needed to plan ahead
and book it!

Crystal Creek Reservoir

We started seeing SNOW!

It got quite a bit cooler
so we closed the windows
and put on our jackets!

We were so lucky to be able to see many Big Horned Elk!
This was the first time they saw them for over 3 months.

The scenery was fantastic!

It was exciting to see so much snow in June!

Yes, it was a little chilly at the top of Pikes Peak!

Just ask Grace?
I'm thinking her smile is not... quite... genuine!
It's more of a "get me out of here" smile
because I'm cold!

We probably won't be able to go to the top of Pikes Peak again,
but it was fun to do it once!

The photos do not do the mountains justice.

The view was absolutely magnificent!

Gymnasts love to get handstand pics in the oddest places!

We are doing our best at discovering Colorado!

There sure is a lot to see here!

The children LOVE their daddy!

I don't believe we put a quarter in the binoculars
so I'm not sure what they are looking at...
probably nothing, but at least they are having fun!

After spending 45 minutes at the top
it was time to catch the train back down.

We made a few seat changes for the ride back!
And yes, I assign seats!

These two sat across from us on the way down.
They are a hoot to be with!

Mom and Dad!
With photo bomber Ellie
between us!

I may have gotten into a little trouble
for changing seat while the train was moving...

Someone may have said to me...
you are the guardian of all these children
PLEASE be a good example
and stay seated...
GULP... yes Mam, I'm sorry.
I won't get out of my seat again...

I'm pretty sure I can see all the way to Missouri now!

More Big Horned Elk!

The ride down went much faster!

Thankful for the chance to do this and to explore Colorado!
It was a great day together!
God is so good and so amazing!