Joseph's 1st Fish

Joseph was the most excited I have seen him. He couldn't wait to go fishing.
This weekend we had a yard sale with some friends down town at her house. Joseph went shopping while we were there.....he "bought" some lures from his new buddy (Mr. Vern). That is what he calls him.....my buddy Mr. Vern. It got him so excited to go fishing and you can see he did a good job.

Garden

Just a little update on our garden. It is going much better than we ever thought. We have been enjoying squash and cucumbers for the last week or so. We are looking forward the the rest very soon.

Sweet Baby Girl Tomatoes



















Banana Peppers

Exercise

In our effort to get some exercise, Matt made us a trail in the field above our house. He spent about 2 hours mowing through weeds. It turned out really great. It's beautiful...It's like our very own small Canaan Valley. That's what it looks like.....trails over in the valley. We have seen deer, woodpeckers, birds, and even kitty enjoying the trail. You can even stop and pick some berries if you like.









John is riding his bike about 2 miles a day around the loop. I am walking/jogging (mostly walking) around a mile to a mile and a half. Matt is jogging about a mile or two. We are really enjoying getting out. .......well most of us.
Joseph is not so happy about the trail....well I didn't tell you about the not so good part. There are several ant hills along the side of the trail. You don't want to stop anywhere near them. That is good motivation to keep going.....which is good. but Joseph always stops for something and he gets a couple of ants on his feet and you can hear him for miles.

John's New Toy

We went to pick up Matt's bike at the bike shop and look what John fell in love with. He is getting really good at riding and he really loves it too. It will be good exercise for him. Everyone needs that......especially at our house. Joseph has moved up to training wheels......we will get picture of that soon.

Congratulations to Jennifer & Lee

Our family has the first baby girl. It's so exciting. Can't wait to see her in person.

Madeline Grace

Born: July 1, 2008
5 lbs 13 oz
19 inches

Joshua Walking

Joshua is completely mobile now. He starting trying to walk at the beginning of June and by his birthday was pretty good. Here is a little video to see him walking today (July 2). Enjoy.

Joshua's 1st Birthday

Joshua had a good birthday. He really enjoyed his cake. Thanks for all the cards and money. We really appreciate it.

Garden Update

The garden is doing better than we expected. We can't wait to grill some of our very own veggies. Roasted red peppers.......my personal favorite.

It looks like, I am not alone in loving red peppers or green peppers or hot peppers or cucumbers. The deer seem to enjoy them just as much as we do.

VBS

This is night three out of four. It's been a good time for all the kids. This year is Joseph's first time and he is having a blast. The skits are really good........"Not Your Average Joe" is this years theme. The life of Joseph and how God takes care of his children even when things are not going the way we plan. Our intern pastor, Josh, wrote the skits. He is really a talented guy. We are blessed to have quite a few talented people at our church.























































Me and Joshua are hanging out here at home tonight. We went the first night and plan to go tomorrow for the finale.

Creative Summer Days

Here is a link to one of my favorite blogs. They are always having cool giveaways and contests. This one is will be very nice for moms this summer.

Beating the Heat

It's been really hot here for a few days but the boys don't seem to mind with their new water slide........

John: The Photographer

John is spending his last day of 3rd grade at work with Matt. He is learning some valuable skills. He took some wonderful photos with Matt's new dept. SLR. I really like both photos but I like the top one best. Matt likes the Clematis the best..........
Which one is your favorite?

post your vote

Garden Update

Planting is complete and the beans are starting to come up. It's exciting to see. We are growing our own "farm fresh" food (Joseph terminology). When John was about 3, he asked if we could plant some Oreos. Wouldn't that be great!!!! Anyone have any Oreo seeds?

My Man Hard at Work

Matt tilled our garden yesterday. It was a lot of work because the ground is really hard. He did a good job though.



You can see the boys and me gave him lots of support but not much help.



More to come...........as we get things planted.

Memorial Day Badminton

John's winning spike!............This kid's got talent

Joseph's 4th Birthday

Here are a few photos from Joseph's big day. He is really growing and changing. He loves to talk about getting big ...........when he gets four...........he will be able to do almost anything. He thinks!? Four is here so we will see....................
Enjoy....

He is really proud of his new shades, if you can't tell.

2008 Pinewood Derby

Contenders for the Faith had their Pinewood Derby tonight. All the boys had a really good time and of course the dads too. John's first time out.........he won second place out of 13 boys and also got the Award for the Best Car Design. John and Matt had a really good time working together to build his car. The other boys are: Nigel Hansen-1st place and Chase Simmons-3rd place.

Outer Banks Vacation

What a relaxing time!!! No work just play. We had at great time together. Our beach house was nice with a DQ at one end of the street and the beach access at the other end. The wind was quite strong so we didn't get to spend a lot of time on the beach but the boys still had fun burying each other in the sand and collecting shells. We stopped by the lighthouses, rode the Ferry to Ocracoke Island and on the way home visited the Wright Brothers National Memorial. We are already planning our trip for next year.

Below is a video clip of the ocean: you can hear and see the what the wind was like :>)

Blackwater Falls Home School Trip

What a beautiful day at Blackwater Falls.
The temperature was perfect for a great day of hiking.
The group hiked 3 1/2 miles while the moms hung out and talked.









The falls was really full of water.......It was the prettiest we have ever seen.

We always have to get a good photo when we can.

Joshua 9 months

Here is a couple new pictures of Joshua!
If you look really close in the first one, you can see his two new teeth.

John's Academic Fair

The home school group had an Academic Fair last night. It was really exciting for the kids. All the kids did a really good job on their displays. Here is John's display. His topic was hiking. He also made a movie (watch it below) of the places he has been hiking that he played in front of his display. It turned out GREAT.

Hope you enjoy the pics.

First Hike Of The Hiking Season

We went to Seneca Rocks on March 29th to go hiking. It was a chilly 32 when we left home Brrrrrr! Had a great time. When we got to the platform we sat down and had a powerbar yum. (really need that power.) Here's some pictures enjoy! - John

The Bad Apple

This is what Larry and The Bad Apple can do to you. It will put you right to sleep. For us, this was good for someone who really needed a nap.

Easter

Here's a photo of us on Easter.

More Progress

Joshua is learning new tricks. John yelled to get us to come in the bedroom and this is what we found.............
As you can tell, he really likes being a "BIG" boy.

Little Crawling Man

Joshua is really on the move these days. He likes to be able to move around and get cords, paper, remotes, or what ever else is in his reach.

Enjoy!!!

(Click on > play to start)

First Trout of the Year

John and I made a quick trip to the South Branch this evening. It payed off. It was a team effort. I hooked it................John fought it and reeled it in! Can't beat a 70 degree evening in the middle of March on the South Branch, catching fish.

Joshua: 8 months

Where is time going?
I can't believe Joshua is already 8 months old.
He is crawling and getting into everything.
Where did mommy's baby go???????

Dinner and Bowling

Last night we went out to celebrate Rose's 30 (something) birthday and John's completion of standardized school testing. Dinner at O'Neil's was very good (especially the dessert). Afterwards, we went bowling. This was Joseph's first time (and if anyone saw my score, they would think it was my first time too, ha ha).

Enjoy the photos.........

Daddy's Surprise 80th Birthday Party!!

We had Daddy a surprise birthday party on September 2. It was really nice. I'm sure he had a really good time. Almost everyone was there, about 35 people including Matt's parents and one of Daddy's brothers. Daddy's cake (that you can see in the picture) has a picture of him when he was 19 years. Quite the handsome fellow if I do say so myself.

"My Three Sons"

Baby Monroe..............I mean, Joshua Peter

Here is a photo of Joshua Peter at one month. This first month has absolutely flown by. He is eating like a pig, and growing like a weed. I'll try to keep the photos coming.