The Jesse Tree

The weekend before Christmas, Chloe and Elijah were a part of our church's Christmas production, the Jesse Tree. With 140 kids involved, this was quite the ensemble. Chloe had her very own line and participated in a dance while Elijah played the part of a cherub, along with another 33 other 4 to 5 year olds.

"The time came for the baby to be born. And she gave birth to her first born, a son" - Luke 2:6

Elijah enthusiastically waved his hands during the Sing, Gloria song.

We had a hard time getting a decent picture of Chloe because she was directly behind the mic stand. This will have to work.

Elijah smiling during rehearsal.

Chloe and Elijah at home still in their costumes. I can't seem to recall why Elijah is unhappy in these pictures.... I'm sure it will occur to me after I'm done with this post.

A Soccer Star is Born Elijah has almost completed his first season of soccer and the kid is in love.

Until Next Spring!

Micah is 2!

I'm not sure when it happens, when a child goes from babyhood to toddlerhood. Micah is still our baby and as you can see from the picture above, is very much attached to his mother. I love this picture. He is at the Denver Zoo, so upset that I would dare to leave him in that contraption.

Below are some pictures from the party. We had an Italian feast with family.

Micah didn't eat much of the food but he helped himself to lots and lots of Italian cookies.

He loved all the attention and can still be heard to this day singing "Happy Birthday to Micah".

And all the presents!!! He had lots of help from his brother and cousin, Ethan.

Pinata Time

We are so grateful for this precious boy that the Lord has entrusted with us. He is a smart little one. I am often told stories by Sunday school teachers and preschool teachers of his achievements, as if I don't already know (smile). He brings us great delight.

My baby boy turns 2 this month.

Chloe's first day of second grade

Here is Chloe on her first day of first grade, one year ago.

Here she is on her first day of second grade. She really has grown so much!
The annual hug from her best bud, Elijah.

The walk to class

Chloe at her desk

Chloe wasn't exactly fond of summer ending and school starting all over again. I can't blame her. Summer is a precious time. We ended the first week of school with a trip to the ice cream store. I can still remember that sick feeling I had every Sunday night as a child. Chloe seems to share that same dread. She loves freedom to play, dream and create.

Lemon Cucumbers and Crabapple Jelly

So I know Pitkin, Part II is way over due but I was so excited about our summer harvest, I don't care. We have been busy collecting lots and lots of zucchini, yellow squash, tomatoes and our favorite, the lemon cuc. Unlike its counterpart, the lemon cucumber is not bitter or seedy at all. It is just the right amount of firmness and all over cucumber taste. I highly recommend them. Now on to canning. I can sum it up in one word, PHEW! I'm tired but feel very accomplished. I canned, with the help of Helen, 22 jars of jelly today. My hands are tired but I feel good!

One of our lemon cucumbers

The crabapples

It takes a lot of chopping to get the fruit from these little guys.

A picture by some of the finished product.

Elijah was there the whole time, which is why his nickname is "The big helper".

Get Inside His Head

My boy, Elijah, is a smart kid. He is pretty sure he knows how the world works.

Saturday at Costco he tells me, "You should go and buy more money mom." Wouldn't that just solve everything?

Chloe's World

We made homemade ice cream in ziploc baggies last night. It was extremely easy and fun, except for the part where the bags had to be shaken for 5 to 8 minutes. The kids had Tired Arm Syndrome pretty early on and I was also feeling a litte tired after 5 minutes of shaking. When we were done, the kids dove right into eating the yummy treat. Looking a little closer at Chloe, I realized she was wearing no pants. I said, "Chloe, you have no pants on!" She looked down, grinned, and responded: "just pretend like I have on pants mom." Will do daughter.

Pitkin, Part 1

"Pitkin isn't on a map, but neither is heaven" - from a bumper sticker in Pitkin, CO

Golden's Farmers Market

The City of Golden has a farmer's market in the summer every Saturday. We went the last weekend of June and had an awesome time. The market itself isn't anything too fabulous, especially if you've been to Boulder's market - which happens every Saturday as well. The great thing about Golden is they provide free horse drawn carriage rides and the driver is an old friend of mine, Nina. Nina used to board her draft horses at my Grandma's property in Golden for many years until my Grandma sold her land. It was so fun to see her and take a ride.

The kiddos really loved the ride through an older neighborhood in Golden.

Nina and her Carriage

She has two carriages running on Saturdays. The line can be pretty long at times but definitely worth the wait.

All smiles!

Except for one......

Two out of three ain't bad!