Gone Fishin'

Today our family went fishing for the first time all together. Ramiro and I fished a little when we were kids, but neither of us have fished since then, so its not surprising that we didn't catch anything. It didn't matter, we still had so much fun! Hannah caught a bug for one of her science projects, Aaron threw pebbles in the great Brazos River, and Luke answered the call of nature - in nature! We had so much fun, we're going to try to hit all the area fishin' holes from now until  the weather gets too cold. Maybe we'll become experts, and actually be able to bring home dinner one night!

The Icing on the Cake

When you become a mother you take on many roles: chef, nurse, teacher, security guard, chauffeur, etc. I didn't realize that I might also become a cake baker and decorator! Since Hannah has been born, I've made a lot of cakes and have gotten a little better over the years. Hannah has caught a love of cake decorating and over the past month we took a cake decorating class. I thought I'd share some of our favorite pictures of pre-class cakes we've made throughout the years! I would love for you to share pictures of cakes you've made, too!

Aaron's Elmo Cake with Cookie Monster Cupcakes

Carrot Cake - Doris's favorite!

Luke's Mickey Mouse

Hannah's Flower

Hannah's ladybug

Luke's Teddy Bear

Hannah's Princess Cake

Luke's First Birthday

Another Princess Cake

The First Princess Cake - following Gommy's tradition

Luke's Peter Pan Cake

Hannah's Minnie Mouse

German Chocolate - Ramiro's favorite!

Kindergarten: The Big Adventure!

Luke started kindergarten this year and what an adventure it is - for both him and I. When my children are in the hands of others, my heart is as well. Luke is a sweet, intelligent little boy, and he definitely has his quirks. How will his teachers see him? Will they see his quirks as God-given unique characteristics that make him perfect for what God has planned for him? Will they see his potential and be excited to teach him? Thankfully, I know that Luke is not just in the hands of his teachers, he's in the hands of God, and so is my heart. Everyday I will choose not to worry about my little man Luke, but have faith that God is in control and will protect him. I will pray that he will learn and be happy, and when he is not happy, that he will remember that he is not alone.

During the 2nd week of school, Luke was a little afraid to go back and my mom wrote him a letter that said, "You are a super boy like David...[who] faced the things he feared because he knew he had God with him all the time." I will continue to point Luke to his Lord when he is afraid and teach him that he can do all things through Christ who strengthens him (Phill. 4:13). And I will rejoice in the Lord when I hear Luke say to me, as he did last Friday, "I knew I could do it!"

New Year, New School, New Life!

Hannah began 3rd grade this year at a university-model school. That means she goes to school 2 days a week and studies at home 3 days a week. This opportunity is providing such a wonderful new way of life for us. I get to be Hannah's co-teacher and see her learn while I learn with her! She loves her new school, her subjects, and her teachers and we love being together more and spending more quality time with each other. By sharing in her reading and assignments with her, we have more shared experiences together which provide a wonderful basis for viewing and discussing life together. Its a wonderful new beginning! Here's a look at all of Hannah's first days of school so far!

Kindergarten

1st Grade

2nd Grade

3rd grade

The Terrible Twos are Here Again!

Our sweet Aaron James turned 2 on August 15 and the terrible 2s are here! Once again, I thought I had a calm, patient, child that has turned out to be a demanding noise-maker! Don't get me wrong, he's still my angel, just a loud one! I totally understand why the term "terrible" is used to describe this age. It must be so terrible to have an idea you want to get across, but not be able to use the words to say it! It must be terrible to be trying to tell your mommy you want to eat cake, when she's trying to get you to eat your vegetables. It must be terrible when you see the toy you want, you need, you have to have right now, and then you see that it is in your big brother's hands. It must be terrible when you want to be all snug in your mommy's lap, but your big sister is there instead. It must be so terrible when you want to pull your dog's tail, but he runs away so you can't. Hopefully we can help little Aaron through this "terrible" time and we can all grow in patience and love! We love you so much Aaron James!

The Best Tryers!

The end of summer is here and we had a wonderful, relaxing summer. A big part of our summer was spent swimming. Hannah had a wonderful swim season this past summer. Her favorite stroke is the backstroke and that's also the one that she swims the fastest. In one of her 6 swim meets she even won a blue ribbon in backstroke. She didn't always get the ribbon she wanted. However, one time she received the ribbon she wanted, and  it was not the one she deserved. At first she was very excited, but then she realized it was wrong and went to report it to the scorekeepers. I was so very proud of her for making that choice on her own.  The season ended with a great swim party where she received a medal for Most-Improved 7/8 year old girl!

This was Luke's first year to take swim lessons with the swim team. He was a Mini-Ray. Luke is cautious in the water, which is a good thing. By the end of the summer, he was able to swim several feet out to his coach or to me in the water. He even participated in the Mini-Ray swim meet where he won a blue ribbon and a green ribbon!

We are so proud of our swimmers! In the words of Jim Anderson in Father Knows Best, Luke and Hannah were our "best tryer[s]!"