October Already?

Where does the time go? I can't believe we are almost half way through October. Every year October seems to creep up on me. I'm guessing because the weather here is still toasty....in the 90's and in no way does it feel like fall or look like it. I really miss the changing of colors and the cooler, stormy weather that October brings. However, even though it's still a bit warm, I am enjoying the cooler mornings and evenings here. I know it won't be too long and I'll be pulling out my sweatshirt. :)

Carly turned 17 months today. Wow! She is changing so much and so fast. She says everything....half of it though you just can't understand. And whoever says that the terrible two's start at two...wrong! She has certainly shown us some good meltdowns. We do get a good chuckle out of it half the time because it is soo fake and she can turn it off so fast!

I hope to be better about taking pictures in the weeks ahead. Oh...Connor's birthday is coming up and I can guarantee you there will be some fun pictures!! Stay tuned....

Connor's hair for spirit week (if you only knew what it took to hold that hair up)

Go Crusaders!

I love this time of year....football season! Connor had his first game on Friday and I am proud to report that his team won...30-6. Whoo-hoo! Now that he is a 7th grader he is on the school Jr. High team. He has a great team of guys (not sure "boys" is the cool way to refer to them as) and the coaches are awesome Godly men. They aren't only learning about how to play ball, but what it means to be respectful, to live with integrity and how to be men of God. We look forward to each game and know this will be a fun season!

Trying to keep cool in the triple digit temp!

Baby Adiele

Carly and I had the opportunity to fly up to Washington to see our newest family member, my niece, Adiele Ann Raina C. She was born on the 13th weighing in at 8lbs 11oz. She is adorable and has head full of hair! Every time Carly would see her, she would say "baby" over and over and lean over to offer kisses. I'm so glad we were able to see baby Adiele and had a wonderful time with family and friends....just wish we could have stayed longer.

Back to School

The boys are back in school. Well, they actually started back last week..... I'm just a little behind on posting the pictures. Carter is now in the 4th grade and Connor is a 7th grader! Wow...we have a Jr. Higher. That shall make for a fun and interesting year.

A Girly Girl??

Carly loves these boots...even if they are two sizes too big. She brings them to us, lifts her leg for us to put them on, then walks around for an hour with them. Here she is in her pj's (that don't match), her belly showing (nice) and the hot pink boots!

Loves her glasses too!

Just Around the Corner

It's hard to believe that the boys start school in two weeks...our summer is almost over! It's time to start preparing for that first day back. The boys got their hair cuts, we'll have "meet the teacher" to attend and we need to do the infamous school supply shopping! These last two weeks will fly by...I'm sure!

And this is what you will find when you leave a toddler alone for 30 seconds!

A Great Day....

but with one little exception. Yesterday our day was busy running here and there and yet filled with some wonderful news.

Carter had an appointment with the orthopedic Dr. A few weeks ago at PT, his therapist discovered the curve in his spine. She brought it to our attention assuming we were aware of it, but we were not. We brought him to his pediatrician who then ordered the x-ray. The radiologist reported two curves, both at a 26 degree angle....not exactly good for a 10 year old. So basically his spine is an *S* shape. So, yesterday when we went to the Dr. we expected him to tell us Carter would need a brace.....but he didn't!! The angle of his spine is not as bad as the radiologist reported (I guess rather safe than sorry) and we don't need to do any treatment at this time. Thank you Lord! We were so happy to hear that. We will have another x-ray in 6 months and just continue to keep a close eye on it.

For some more great news....my nephew, Henry James, arrived at 10:25 am weighing in at 10 pounds 4 ounces! WOW! After Carter's Dr.s appointment we were able to stop in and visit baby, mom and dad. Mom is a bit sore but doing great and Henry is so darn cute!! He really doesn't seem like a newborn considering his size. He's just so pudgy! We're all thankful for the safe delivery and a beautiful healthy baby Henry!

Now for the exception.... Connor got his braces on and has a very sore mouth! Poor guy! It took them over 2 hours to get them on and he spent the rest of the day hanging out on the couch. He can't eat much of anything yet, except soup, and Advil just isn't helping much. I'm sure another day and he will feel better!

Here is Hannah holding her baby brother for the first time! Precious!

Our Fourth

Our day started out with dropping off Connor at his school for summer camp. There he met up with at least 100 other Jr. High kids and together they left for the cool outdoors of Williams Az...near Flagstaff. It was a bit strange for us, mom and dad, to leave him and have reality set in big time...we have a Jr. Higher!! Below I will attach a video of the camp where he is at for the week....makes me wish I was a kid again.

We then headed over to Tim and Tanya's and rather than a bbq, since it was too hot to do that, we did sub sandwiches. We did some swimming but I have to say it wasn't too refreshing since the water temp. was that of bath water. But none the less, we had fun. At dark, Tanya and I took Kaitlyn, Carter and Hannah to the park to watch the fireworks. This was Kaitlyn's first time celebrating the fourth here in America. So to see her experience the firework show was great. I had to laugh at the fact that there we sat on the grass at 8:30 pm and the temp was still a 100 degrees and we were sweat'n.....I have to say, I do miss celebrating this holiday in Washington.

Once again, I did not get as many pictures as I would have liked but here are a few.

Here is where Connor is at this week. The camp is put on by Young Life. Be sure to turn off the music below.

Busy!

That sums up our last few weeks. I can not believe June is gone. Here is just a brief re-cap....

• Gramma from Washington came to visit for a week and we had a lot fun.
• Carly got her first Build-A-Bear.
• We saw the movie Up...and loved it!
• Had ortho appt. for Connor and will be getting round two of braces in the next few weeks.
• Had a couple dr. appts. for Carter. One appt. downtown at Children's and the other appt. with his pediatrician to discuss his scoliosis...which we'll be seeing an orthopedic soon for that.
• Carter had a fun full week of Vacation Bible School
• Got to see my sweet friend, Monica, who I grew up with and who I haven't seen in years (and really wish we had a picture taken together).
• Swimming at Aunt Tanya's
• Celebrated a wonderful Father's Day.
• Erik went to New York and was back with-in 24 hrs...as well as Houston...and is now in Seattle.
• Attended a wedding
• Friday Fun Movie
• Piano lessons, Carter's therapy ....and more!

I can't believe that during this time, I only managed to get one picture. I just couldn't seem to remember my camera.

And a little update on Carly.....she is talking so much. She will say...*all done*, *hi*, *more* (usually only pertaining to food), *Hannah* (her cousin), will tell you what the dogs says, and a lot of jibber jabber which we can't understand. She can sign *more* but prefers to say it since she can get our attention much quicker that way, *please* which she uses a lot....for just about everything she wants, and *drink*. She is walking great now and is all over the house! No more formula or bottles. She does great with sippie cup and is even using a straw. And have I mentioned that this girl can eat! She will eat whatever we are eating. If we go out, I just share with Carly! She has such a great personality and is very social. I am amazed to see the differences between her and my boys when they were at this stage of life. I love seeing her grow and learn each day!

Now we head into July and I'm sure the time will fly.....and I better have my camera handy!

Our Road Trip

These are a Few of My Favorite Things....I Miss!