Elder Family

Levi Stats

2012-01-24T07:00:00.001-06:00

I have never been good at recording all the boy's milestones but here are Levi's stats from his 9 month appointment:
Weight: 20.5 pounds
Height: 28.5 inches

Our boy is happy and healthy besides the recent ear infection and nasty diaper rash. He is a very happy baby until recently to take naps and bedtime. He has 6 teeth now: 4 on top, 2 on the bottom. Eating some table foods: cheerios, green beans, cooked carrots, yogurt, scrambled eggs (still not sure about these), and I might have given him a little bit of a zucchini brownies that I made the other day!
Still in love with his brother and smiles every time Noah walks into the room. He also loves to go into the bathroom and seems to know instantly when someone has opened the door or has left the door to the bathroom open. He prefers to crawl over things instead of going around. He is pulling himself up on furniture, boxes, toys, etc and even stepping along or moving the item. He babbles a lot and has been caught climbing the stairs when we forget to put the gate up.

I just can't believe that in 3 months we will be celebrating our baby's 1st birthday!

A Bit Trapped

2012-01-23T14:56:00.000-06:00

I am feeling a little closed in these days. As my first winter in Iowa as a SAHM while I love my children I am so tempted just to bundle us all up and haul us to Target or the Mall just to see other humans. I am also a bit bummed that I have not been able to get Noah outside as much as I would like and as much as he needs to get out there and run and get fresh air. I am in a dilemma with Levi at the age he is in and Noah where he is. Yes, I can bundle both boys from head to toe but really Levi can't get down and play in the snow, he can't move like Noah and keep warm so I am getting a little stir crazy on how to keep us all entertained. That's all really...not very excited.

Levi's fishy face, he has been doing this a lot!

Noah and I did get out this last weekend while David was home, he had fun. I am glad we got out when we did the snow was gone by noon!

Here are some other things we have been doing inside, check out my Sweet Elder blog!

We Like To Move It, Move It!

2012-01-14T19:48:00.000-06:00

The Holidays!

2012-01-04T19:52:00.000-06:00

Christmas was here, though looking out our windows on Christmas morning you would have thought it was the beginning of Fall NOT the end of December! The weather has been so strange for us Midwestern folk but I don't believe many of us are complaining! (It actually reminds me of our Texas winters) We enjoyed so much time with each other over the holiday and with family and friends. With David being a professor he gets a good long break from his office and duties, it is nice to have that schedule for those respites and I try my hardest not to just hand over the kids and clock out myself but to make our time as a family relaxing and not over scheduled. I also have to remind myself not to just clock out because this is to be a break for David too...something we have had to work through. It is kind of funny because as much as I love David being home now that I am a SAHM he kind of throws my groove off, and I tease him about it as he asks me if I would like him to leave! But after we are all adjusted and into the swing of it we have lots of fun times together: driving around looking at lights, enjoying meals with friends and family, baking, playing soccer at the playground, opening presents after presents, eating more, watching movies, reading books, coloring and I also look around Isee how absolutely blessed I am.

Levi: Teeth

2011-12-24T22:17:00.000-06:00

Levi's teeth are coming in full force. I finally caught a couple of pics. First of all Levi isn't really a sit still kind of guy and if you even try to pull back his lip to see the teeth he will stick out his tongue or clamp his mouth shut. These pics were taken at least a week ago so we have seen a couple more teeth since then. The other funny thing is that none are coming in next to each other so he looks like a jack-o-lantern! He has such a cute, goofy grin.

Our Mover

2011-12-17T22:37:00.000-06:00

Well we actually have two now. Levi it definitely on the move these days. He is lots of fun to play with and Noah has found lots of enjoyment in his little brothers new abilities. Noah was more excited than us this evening when Levi had pulled himself up on David to a leaning stand, 'Mom, mom come look Levi is standing.' It is so much fun to see our boys grow each day. I feel so blessed to be home with them.

Levi in the last week of so has found more adventures crawling through/underneath his exersaucer than he does actually getting in it. We have a video but blogger isn't letting me upload. I will keep working on it.

The last couple of days we have had to make sure all the doors are closed to bathrooms, basement stairs, bedrooms, etc because we never know where we might find Levi. This is one of the places I found him today. I think he might walk sooner than his brother did....

Elder Year at a Glance

2011-12-16T20:12:00.000-06:00

Make your own scrapbook design

First Snow

2011-12-03T22:05:00.000-06:00

We finally got snow today! I haven't been too worried about it not being here yet but it was so fun to watch it falling today. Noah was super excited and played outside in the snow with neighbors. Levi got out in the snow too, his FIRST snow! While I was getting Levi bundled up just imagine the little brother in The Christmas Story that couldn't move because of his snowsuit, it was pretty cute. (but since my hands were full with the little guy I didn't get a pic, sorry)

Here is a pic of the mover though!

Happy Birthday!

2011-11-29T15:32:00.000-06:00

Our little boy is 4, I can't believe it. David reminded me that 4 years ago we went to bed knowing that we would be induced in the morning and meet out little boy, Noah. But at about 2 am my water broke. David just wanted to go back to bed, but really how could I? So we made our way to the hospital expecting to be sent home but went none the less. They admitted me right away, so we expected to meet our son soon, Noah didn't arrive until 7 pm! It was a long day but so worth it!

We of course celebrated Thanksgiving this last weekend as well as my mom's birthday but the big part of our weekend was Noah's birthday. We celebrated with a Lego inspired birthday. David is so proud that Noah has taken to building with Legos. I have also enjoyed it to see the excitement when he shows me what he has built, or when he wakes David and I up at 6 am with a Lego creation (no joke, who knows how long he had been up) or the time that David and Noah spend together building.
Here are a few picks from our weekend I celebrating!

Playing with Legos

Thanksgiving

Playing at the park on Thanksgiving, it was such a nice day!!

A trip to the Zoo (taking advantage of the beautiful weather). Can you spy Noah and I?

Lego Birthday Pics!

Noah Got a Bike!

2011-11-15T08:00:00.000-06:00

Noah got a bike from Grandma and Bucko for his birthday and he loves it.

I Am Thankful

2011-11-12T12:48:00.000-06:00

for such cool dudes in my life! (I guess David didn't make the cut)

Movember

2011-11-10T10:56:00.000-06:00

David and some co-workers are teaming together to raise money for prostate cancer. They started the month clean shaven...our little boys were not so sure about Daddy's bare face! They will only we growing a mustache for the month of November to raise money. If you feel led please donate to the Morningside Mushtangs!!

Link for the Morningside Mushtangs!

Here are some pics of David through the transition to Movember!

What David normally looks like.

David first shaved his head for Halloween and went to work looking like his co-worker! A remarkable resemblance, huh?!

Having a little fun with Movember.

Levi Crawling (6 months)

2011-11-08T10:38:00.001-06:00

I just caught the end of his journey but you get the idea about what we are up against and I am sure David is extremely proud that he was going after the XBox controller. Although it is not the 'traditional' crawling method, it gets him to where he wants to go. I guess I better start baby proofing and getting the gates out!

Happy Halloween

2011-10-31T21:47:00.000-05:00

Happy Halloween to all you ghosts and goblins! We think Noah enjoyed passing out candy more than he liked trick or treating himself, it was super funny he was yelling down kiddos across the street to come over because 'we have candy over here!'

Noah: the Photogragher

2011-10-24T14:43:00.000-05:00

Noah loves taking pictures and usually they are really close up pics! Enjoy some of his snap shots (I am not sharing the close ups of me :-) )

Can anyone guess what the close up below is?

Levi: 6 months

2011-10-19T20:50:00.000-05:00

We haven't had his doctor's appointment yet to share his stats but Levi celebrated 6 months on Friday!! I (I am sure David too) cannot believe that our baby is 6 MONTHS OLD already!! It seems like this little fella is growing up much faster than his big brother.
What Levi is up to:
~ Rolling and rolling and rolling
~ Getting up on hands and knees and rocking (there have been a few scoots forward but mostly we are still in reverse)

~Taking in about 4-5 6 oz. bottle a day with a veggie/fruit or cereal in there for lunch or dinner. So far he has had green beans, peas, squash, sweet potatoes next we will do a few more fruits!

~ He really loves and calms down when we turn on his crib mobile music in the middle of the night which has helped us greatly in getting him to self soothe and sleep all night without a bottle or pacifier.
~ Gives his brother the biggest smiles and even lets brother wrestle with him, he loves it! (I will post the video in the next couple of days)
~ Takes 2 naps: morning one runs about 1.5 sometimes 2 the afternoon usually takes 2 maybe 3 hours
~ Loves being outside and looking at the trees
~ Lots of squeals and giggles and really only gets fussy when he is hungry. All around a happy boy.

We have been blessed with two happy, healthy boys!

Weekending...

2011-10-11T14:36:00.000-05:00

The Fall makes for a busy time of year (at least it has for us so far)

Crafting with friends
Sitting outside post game with new friends that I hope will become old friends
Crunching leaves, glow sticks, pumpkins
Sharing a meal with family
Celebrating my grandpa's 93rd birthday what an example his life has been and will continue to be for us
A few games of volleyball. It has been years since I played but it was fun and I still got some skills

2011-10-05T21:55:00.000-05:00

Wow, it has been over a month for us to post on here! Life has been rolling along here at a nice steady pace. We are enjoying all that Fall has to offer and I hope to catch up soon. In the meantime check out the little guy. This evening he started really getting up on his hands and knees....we might be getting even busier around here with a little baby proofing and a lot of chasing! Enjoy!

The Past Week

2011-09-07T22:25:00.001-05:00

Like many of our friends we too have been busy! Let's catch up!

Noah started preschool, which he loves and shares little parts of his day(s) with us like what was for snack and what stations he played at.

David is definitely in full swing college mode, extra meetings and committees. But overall very excited about new students and the activity on campus.

My parents visited and as Noah calls it had a sleepover.

We attended a birthday party for a sweet (now) 3 year old and made our first trip to Chuck E. Cheese...David and I have been avoiding taking this place like the plague (David has still managed to avoid it but Noah and I survived).

Sunday we enjoyed a beautiful day in the park at an annual event, ArtSplash, with local artists and lots of great kid's activities.

We made a make shift fire ring in our backyard, collected sticks and had our own little hot dog and s'more roast, it was so enjoyable and the weather couldn't have been better.

Enjoyed an afternoon at Pumpkinland with friends- running through the corn maze, petting bunnies and kittens, and sitting on a pumpkin or two.

Lot of little things in between too:

made my first batch of laundry detergent

made two complete meals to freeze: chicken enchiladas and stuffed shells (hope to post recipe soon, over here)

started making a list of Christmas gifts (hope to share the ones that I make), birthday ideas (Noah has asked for another dinosaur cake) and Halloween costume ideas (Noah: Spiderman, Batman, Captain America or a Scuba Diver)

....oh what busy times we have ahead!

Preschool Here We Come!

2011-09-01T11:04:00.000-05:00

Noah was so ready for preschool to start, I think we are both a little bummed it isn't more than 2 mornings a week but exciting none the less. He walked right into the room and kissed us good bye and that was it. There were no tears, I swear I didn't shed a one. It is a little weird though I don't know why...Noah has been going to some sort of daycare/mom's day out since he was 9 months old. Maybe it is because I am not in the building anymore like I was the first 2 years or maybe it is because I don't have a job to go to, or maybe it is because it just reminds me how old my baby is getting!

Zoo

2011-08-28T20:21:00.000-05:00

I am doing a lot of catching up this August. The Omaha Henry Doorley Zoo is usually an hour drive but with the flooding it is a good two but that has not stopped us from making the trip every other month or so to enjoy all that a zoo has to offer. This last trip we were able to enjoy it with a couple other families, we made it through the zoo with 5 children that remained fairly happy and content throughout, and the adults did pretty well too!

Here are a few shots from the trip.

In the bear caves! Oh my!

Jacob showing off some steps.

Noah thought this duck was pretty funny it was pecking at the window trying to get at Noah.

Ploeger Family, Us'n and the Simmelink Family

Great day by all, hopefully the flood waters start moving out and we can get to the zoo more often (I am hoping that the flood waters move out for other reasons as well). If you are ever in Omaha the zoo is fabulous and we highly recommend it!

Our Anniversary

2011-08-21T21:22:00.000-05:00

We celebrated our 6 year anniversary a few weeks ago, but I haven't gotten the chance to share our date with you! We went bowling, David and I both won a game and called it even. We also realized that we haven't been bowling since before Noah was born, it was so much fun! We also went to the casino boat, neither of us has ever gambled and we thought it would be something spontaneous, plus I have always wanted to pull the arm on a slot machine. We went in with $2 each, David got 25 cents back and I won 17.60 from $2.25!! Then David took $5 from my winnings and played a $5 slot and lost! But we still came out on top. After our gambling adventure we ate at Rebo's which is a local Cajun restaurant and it was AWESOME!!

Oh and as tradition I tried on my wedding dress and don't worry after having a baby 4 months ago it didn't fit, David is holding the back together for me! Noah was so sweet he said, 'Mommy, you are so beautiful!' It has been an awesome and wonderful 6 years with David and I can't wait to see what else is in store for us!

(see evidence that it didn't zip up!)

Our Littlest Monster

2011-08-12T13:33:00.001-05:00

Can you believe that this little monster is 4 months old on Sunday! Boy is time flying by. We have his 4 month check up on Monday so I will update with the stats after that.

This little guy is so happy and easy to smile. He loves his momma, as every little boy should and his big brother. Every time Levi gets Noah in his sights he automatically has a smile on his face. The only time this little guy fusses is if he is hungry (which is about every 3 hours now) and if he is tired of the spot he is in. We have seen the results on him rolling over but very rarely does he do it. He loves to stand on our laps (with our support of course) or be sitting up, other words he loves to see what is going on around him, not just the ceiling fan.

STATS:

16 pounds (75%)

25 1/4 inches (75%)

I remember with Noah we were on a schedule (maybe not by now) at least for naps but Levi is pretty easy going and takes naps here and there throughout the day and basically sleeps all night. It is true you get a little more laid back after the first kiddo (sorry Noah) ;-)

County Fair

2011-08-12T13:22:00.000-05:00

It has been so long since I have been to a county fair and I was just as excited as Noah. Plus we got to spend it with friends. He loved seeing the animals and they had a great Kid's Zone in a cooled building (which was just what little Levi needed). We sipped fresh squeezed lemonade, ate fried foods walked through the livestock barns. I didn't post a pic of it but Noah was super impressed by the Lego dragon that someone had built and received a blue ribbon on. (Noah has been really into Legos, and his daddy is proud)

(I always joke about Noah and his girls) Aren't they cute?!?!

Chicago

2011-08-05T13:56:00.000-05:00

On a recent trip to Chicago we visited the Field Museum and saw Sue...

and some of her friends...

we carried the World on our shoulders....

and of course we had to get hot dogs from a street vendor, David was the only one who actually got a Chicago Dog

We could have spent at least a couple of days in the Field Museum alone, we had a great time!

Noah

2011-07-18T12:04:00.000-05:00

Since Noah doesn't take naps anymore he has a quiet time everyday in his playroom, some days he is happy to go others we have to fight him tooth and nail but that is not what this post is about.
Today, Noah was enjoying quiet time. I could hear him playing with his piggy bank and getting out all the change. Soon Noah comes downstairs with a smile, I am about to send him back up when:

Noah: 'Mom, I got out all my money for another prayful baby!'
Me: 'What?'
Noah: 'I spread out all my money for us to get another baby!'
Me: 'Sweetie, that isn't the way it works.'
Noah: 'No, I am going to pay God for another baby!'
Noah has brought me to tears (happy ones) I pick him up in a big hug, he gives me a huge hug back, he is so proud, David comes into the room.
Noah: 'Dad, I got out all my money for another prayful baby!' and gives us both a huge hug
Me: 'Noah, I am sorry but that isn't the way it works, we will talk about it later.'

Our little boy sure does love his little brother and we have been so proud of him!

Weekending!

2011-07-11T19:34:00.000-05:00

I am finally getting around to creating this post. Something I said I was going to do all summer and now look summer is half way gone!! Can you believe it!? Weekends kind of blur into one another for me so this is basically what we have been up to.

Thursday!
We finally got some family pics done! I can't wait to see all of them I have gotten a sneak peek of course and I am loving what I see!
Dinner with great friends and a quick visit with Grandma and Bucko!

Friday!
The boys stayed home and did who knows what and I spent the day in the car (which I found so wonderful to be by myself with the windows down). And with my mom: chatting, eating, delivering warm/home cooked meals to a few 'shut-ins' and helping with some decluttering (which I actually love to do, I know I am a bit off like that)

Saturday!
Just hanging out at home: playing in the sprinkler, being silly, Noah wrote his name by himself with a few prompts
and finally folding the mounds of clean clothes in baskets in our bedroom, that was wonderful to finally accomplish.

Sunday!
Church
Lazy afternoon, mowing the lawn, grocery run
Church potluck / pool party
And two exhausted little boys, resulting in a full nights sleep!

The Sounds of Levi!

2011-07-09T19:03:00.000-05:00

Happy 4th

2011-07-05T22:05:00.000-05:00

Our 4th of July weekend was jammed pack and lots of fun! We started the weekend with a trip to the zoo with my whole family, we haven't all been together since Christmas so that was fun and then we spent the weekend together at Mom and Dad's just being lazy, watching a movie or two, eating good food, a bonfire and s'mores.

And of course Mom had to get us all patriotic shirts to wear and take a pic!

We came home Sunday to a lazy afternoon with a great visit from David's parents and his Aunt and Uncle from Michigan. It was great just to sit around and chat and enjoy a meal together.

Monday we split forces a bit. David stayed home with Levi (who has been pretty congested) and I took Noah to the pool and a grill out with some friends.
When we got home we let Noah stay up and see the fireworks from our deck going off around the neighborhood and lit some sparklers of our own.

Hope everyone had a safe and happy 4th!

Summer Playing

2011-06-22T23:26:00.000-05:00

We have been enjoying our summer here at the Elder household. Friends over for dinner and playtime.

Microwave s'mores, the rain can't stop us!

Some messy painting/water play on a hot day! It has been a long time since Noah and I have been able to do this. Get out an old shower curtain and squirt on some washable paints and let the kiddos go to town; brushes, squirt bottles of water.

Noah and I bought these water beads, they are for decorating, but you soak in water over night and they are these gel like beads that are really fun to play in. Levi even got to play for a bit, we buried his toes. A friend directed me to this new blog, which is right up my ally, check it out. Play At Home Mom

I love, love, love this pic of Noah playing in his sand/water table!

Everyone getting in a little tummy time!

We FINALLY put our sandbox in and Noah LOVES it! Thanks to my sweet hubby for getting it done, and it looking awesome.

And little Levi's expressions, starting to focus in on us, and cubby smiles (which are not the best pictures, one day I will get a good pic, I am determined)

Daddy's crazy hair dos, poor kid is defenseless!

Sleepy smiles (sorry the pic is fuzzy)

He's kind of adorable...

2011-06-14T19:01:00.001-05:00

Think this is cute? Get your own at http://www.thedottedduck.com/ (your own bow-tie, that is)

And so the summer begins!

2011-06-06T16:35:00.000-05:00

This summer I am going to hang out with my boys and make the most of our days; water fun, story times, trips and adventures. I will try to keep you all in the loop.

I am joining Mary in a little (but hopefully a lot) of this

And I think I am going to join Amanda with a little bit of this of here

Hope you all have a glorious summer!

Brothers

2011-05-25T20:00:00.000-05:00

Hello All! We are still here and doing very well. I can't believe that little Levi is 6 weeks old, time has flown by which only makes me wonder how fast the next few years are going to go.

I wanted to share this little clip with you all. David does this little thing where he will move Levi's bottom lip and give him a deep voice and talk to Noah, which he thinks is hilarious. So yesterday I caught Noah doing the same thing to Levi, which was even funnier. Enjoy!

2011-04-26T20:42:00.000-05:00

Many of you have asked, 'Does Levi look like Noah?' and of course David and I talk about it too...the comparing of the children has begun. So I am posting some pics of Noah in his first couple of weeks and Levi these last two weeks, what do you think? (BTW I think they look(ed) alike)

Noah Ellis

Levi Eric

Easter Weekend

2011-04-25T20:37:00.000-05:00

David has had off Thursday, Friday and Monday so it has been great to have him around as we all transitioning from being a family of 3 to a family of 4 (or for those of you who count pets 4 to 5). We had a great weekend with friends and family celebrating our risen Lord!

We enjoyed brunch with friends on Saturday morning. My sister, Emily, and Mom came up of Saturday for the afternoon and we enjoyed Aunt Emily's spoiling. We shared a snack and dyed Easter eggs and went out for dinner.

We did a Easter basket scavenger hunt with Noah this year giving him written clues to where the next clue was to get closer to his basket. He did pretty well with the clues and it is definitely we will make a tradition for our boys.

Levi went to church for the first time and slept like a champ. After church we headed to David's parents house for Sunday dinner and some relaxation. The weather was beautiful for a couple walks and playing in the yard.

Levi Stats: 8 pounds 2 ounces - he also let me sleep for two 4 hour stretches last night!! I am praying this will turn into a routine (if not longer as he gets bigger).

Pictures

2011-04-20T20:13:00.001-05:00

Here are some more pictures because really that is what you all want to see! We are doing well. Levi is gaining ounces like a champ. All of the grandparents have left (but are not too far away, THANK GOD). And we are settling into what could resemble a routine. Noah adores his little brother and asks when he will be able to play and walk. He also asked me tonight on our walk if we can have another baby!!

Noah's face as he walked in to meet his little brother for the first time!

The nurses put Levi's footprints on David's shirt! They said I can heat set it, I haven't tried yet...any ideas before I try?

Grandma and PaPa

Grandma and Bucko

Bringing Levi home!

One of the most adorable faces ever!

Daddy lovin' on his little man!

He's Here!

2011-04-14T06:08:00.000-05:00

Levi Eric was born at 4:16 on April 14. He's 7 lbs, 10 oz, 19.5 inches long. Looks like he'll have some blonde hair! Everyone is healthy, happy, but relatively tired. We went into the hospital at 9:30 last night, so much shorter than Noah's labor...

Some Early Easter

2011-04-13T16:32:00.000-05:00

Noah and I have had the opportunity to do some Easter egg hunting with friends. And as much as everyone is telling me to sit still, being 9 months pregnant, but I didn't want Noah to miss out on activities and times with friends so I waddle along like an Easter duckling. And really who am I kidding, I am not that good at 'sitting still'. Here are a few shots from our hunts. The first set is with other mommas and kiddos that Noah and I have met and they have all become such great friends for both of us as we are closing in on being here a whole year - can you believe that a year has almost passed since our big move?!? (The pics loaded out of order, sorry)

Our second hunt was a put on by the city and a local hospital and it was crazy busy. I didn't get as many pics mainly because I was afraid that Noah was going to be trampled by the crazy parents that were grabbing the eggs for their kids instead of letting them do it. There was also a local fire truck there and I am pretty sure Noah enjoyed that much more than the hunt itself.

Can you see all those specks out there in the grass? Those are all eggs, they announced that they had stuffed 20,000 eggs!

2011-04-03T13:19:00.000-05:00

This is, quite possibly, the funniest thing Noah has ever done. Yes, there was a bit of prompting by dad, but it's still hilarious. In case you can't tell, he says (repeatedly), "Hi, my name is Sir Dunks A lot." Enjoy!

Guest Blog

2011-03-21T22:40:00.001-05:00

Hey there, everybody! I remember a time, way back in 2000something, when this blog was coauthored. Rebekah would write some posts, I (David) would write some posts, and Noah would dominate everything (so I guess not everything has changed...). Well, now Rebekah has taken over--and she should! As you can see from all of her posts she has a passion for this and it seems that she's made some friends and good bonds in the blogging world. I'm happy for her and proud of her for taking on this project and having pride in the things she's doing as a woman, mom, and wife.

That's why I've decided to write this post. Check out this amazing woman:

She's 8 months pregnant. She's a smokin' hottie. She still works three mornings a week. She still does tons of stuff with Noah--which is well-chronicled on this blog--she's pretty much taken over all cooking duties (which I used to do 5 out of 7 days a week), and she's still smiling! Can we all agree she's awesome?

So, if you see this good lookin' preggo in the next few days or weeks, let her know she's great! (And yes, this really is David writing the blog; it's not Rebekah fishing for compliments because, let's be honest, she doesn't need to fish. She just deserves the compliments!)

St. Patrick's Day

2011-03-21T12:14:00.000-05:00

I know we are all past St. Paddy's day but I forgot to post the pics of Noah's shirt I made for him. So here I am sharing a little green for Spring!

The shirt says 'No Pinching' - he loved telling everyone 'No Pinching'. I was very happy with how my little project turned out.

A Little Song to Share

2011-03-17T20:35:00.000-05:00

A few pictures to start March off right!

2011-03-07T20:45:00.001-06:00

This is the type of thing that happens when I take a nap. David taught Noah to paint with his cheeks, nose, chin, well you can see! Noah thought it was awesome.

Noah and I making some gooey, yummy monkey bread!

Myself and some other playgroup mamas and there kiddos enjoyed an afternoon at Play All Day. Noah and I had never been there, but I am sure we will go back since he asks to go back almost every day! They had bounce houses, a home center, huge lego blocks, art and puzzle tables, mats and a small ball pit - just about everything. I have really felt blessed too in meeting some moms in town, it has been good for Noah and myself.

Week 33: I think this shirt is going to have to be cycled out of my maternity wear from this point on...bummer!

One tuckered out little fella. He actually fell asleep on the couch without any work on our part - David and I couldn't believe it.

Our Spring Break Day outing. David was off this week, I still had to work but we made an afternoon together in town. He checked out the air museum that had an old fire engine, cars, ambulance, helicopter - and the greatest thing about it we could get into just about all the vehicles. Noah had a great time and so did we. After the museum we went to Wendy's for a frosty treat and then swimming at the YMCA.

Hope your March is just as wonderful as ours has been so far!

Update

2011-02-27T22:20:00.000-06:00

I can feel the days of change coming on. As we head into March I know and feel that this pregnancy has flown by and not only is the little guy inside of me growing but so is my baby, Noah. He is getting so big and I can't wait to see him as a big brother. He almost daily gives my belly raspberries and hugs his brother (my tummy). I look forward to the days of watching them grow up together - I know there will be fights and tantrums and whatever else but those moments will go quickly and they will always have the bond of brothers.

Noah has been up to lots:
~ loves to help me in the kitchen cooking and baking.
~ still loves to sit and have books read to him - sometimes we can sit for 30 minutes or more
~ loves to pester or dog, Molly
~ has been playing make believe more, giving his puppets names and carrying on conversations
~ has a fantastic memory - which usually backfires on me, when I don't remember something but he does
~ sits/plays quietly through a whole church service with us
~ loves to visit friends and have people come to our house for dinner or to play
~ loves to play Fruit Ninja and Angry Birds on David's IPod; his love for electronics makes his daddy proud.

I have finished a couple projects for Noah's room (new curtains and a new chair), but Levi's room remains a mess of odds and ends that need to be cleared out so we can at least set up a crib - the poor kid is already playing second fiddle!
I have been feeling great, though big and the tired stage has hit again. I really wish Noah still took naps regularly. I am usually able to squeeze in a short nap when David gets home and before dinner, so that is a blessing. My Dr. appointments are now every two weeks! I am still working three mornings a week and plan on working until I can't or the baby comes.
David has been great through this pregnancy, a bit stressed at time with the balancing act of job, home, dissertation and the upcoming changes in our lives which I can't blame him. The dissertation is coming along - he has got a couple whole chapters to his entire committee and one too the chair of his committee and once she reviews/makes suggestions/comments he will be able to send it to his whole committee as well - what a process!

February 25: I Love...

2011-02-25T14:30:00.000-06:00

That I got to wear pajamas to work today; we had pajama day at school.

I let Noah stay in his pajamas today for daycare too, he thought that was pretty fun.

I love how Noah will sit forever reading books together.

I love how Noah just wants to be with David and I all the time, though it can really drive me crazy - I try and remind myself someday he will think I am not cool and would rather be at a friends house or on his own.

I love how even though it has snowed again that Spring is coming soon and I am thankful for the change of the seasons, all beautiful in their own ways.

February 21: I Love...

2011-02-21T21:00:00.000-06:00

my parents!!

Congratulations on celebrating 30 years of marriage today. We love you!

February 20: I Love

2011-02-20T20:46:00.000-06:00

Bubble Bath, enough said!

February 19: I Love...

2011-02-19T21:20:00.000-06:00

Noah and I enjoyed some books on our front porch with the sun streaming in the windows - it was wonderfully relaxing.

February 16: I Love...

2011-02-16T14:34:00.001-06:00

Playing with food!

This Valentine weekend I have had fun incorporating hearts into our meals. I came up with several meals, pass along any other ideas or Valentine traditions that you might do as a family with young kiddos!

Check out my Sweet Elder for pics!

February 15: I Love...

2011-02-15T08:31:00.000-06:00

Celebrating!

I had fun decorating for a special Valentine's dinner with my boys! (Mom, I know you are laughing because this is about the only time you will see a table cloth on my table). I bought the paper lanterns at the Dollar Tree, and some red heart paper doilies, and put some candles on the table.

Everything that I could make heart shaped, I did!

Noah said, 'It's beautiful!'

He even got to use adult, 'party' glasses, he thought that was fun.

And got to top his pancakes with whatever he wanted - very yummy!

I will share more Valentine-fun meals tomorrow, check back!!

February 14: I Love....

2011-02-14T21:04:00.000-06:00

my Boys!

Noah and Levi (who we all can't wait to meet, 31 weeks this week!)

David and I (we had to take this picture tonight, it was sadly ridiculous that I couldn't not find a picture of us)

February 10/11: I Love...

2011-02-11T20:50:00.000-06:00

storytime with a 3-year old!!

We were playing with playdough and Noah started singing Little Bunny Foo Foo with the bunny cookie cutter - we had fun! Plus he loved 'making a movie' - which we did....

This being said, blogger is not letting me download the video - I am very bummed (I have tried for the last two nights). So if I ever get the video up I will be sharing it for sure.

February 9: I Love...

2011-02-09T15:23:00.000-06:00

Mischief

Don't worry he colored on himself with bath markers so it came off pretty easily, but he thought he was so funny!

February 8: I Love...

2011-02-08T20:39:00.000-06:00

A day warm enough to play in the snow - which was actually Friday and then is got frigid cold last night/today! I guess I can feel good about taking advantage of the warmer weather while it was happening.

February 7: I Love...

2011-02-07T20:14:00.003-06:00

Sewing!!

This is the material I am using to make new curtains for Noah's room. You can say that my nesting does not only involve the babies room but Noah's room all over again. I hope to be showing you some finished projects in the next couple of weeks.

February 6: I Love...

2011-02-07T14:46:00.000-06:00

getting together with friends!!

Last night we spent the evening with friends watching the Super Bowl, sharing tasty foods and talking. I don't have a single picture of the evening but we had a great time.

February 5: I Love...

2011-02-05T08:16:00.000-06:00

a good stack of books!!

and yes these are all stacked on my bedside table but I am currently reading The Wednesday Sisters.

February 4: Love is...

2011-02-03T19:09:00.002-06:00

This little boy (disguised as a parrot) waiting for his Daddy to get home from work.

He probably sat at the front window for 5 minutes waiting for David - very cute.

February 3: Love Is...

2011-02-03T08:38:00.000-06:00

A DATE NIGHT!!

No pictures but a couple of hours sitting in Barnes and Noble and getting a hot drink at Starbucks is just what David and I needed. To sit, talk, look at each other, laugh and just be together without any distractions.

February 2: Love is...

2011-02-02T10:56:00.000-06:00

A baby bump.

And boy do we have a lot to love there, I can't believe we only have 2.5 months to see the little guy. By the way we are pretty sure our little Tomato-Tomato will be named Levi Eric Elder!! We are all so very excited and preparing - as soon as the snow goes away we can finish the baby's room, all of the furniture is in the garage!!

February 1: Love is....

2011-02-01T10:37:00.001-06:00

A dear friend, Kerry, over at Young Ones is hosting a Love Series for the month of February - join us!

Here is the little one making some Valentine cards to spread the love.

He is a bit of a cheese!

Under Construction

2011-01-30T14:49:00.003-06:00

Forgive the mess, I am playing around with Blogger so things might look a little messy for awhile. :-)

Our Snowman Friend

2011-01-27T18:34:00.000-06:00

The weather has been 'warm' the last couple of days and Noah and I have finally gotten some wet snow to make a snowman. I basically did the construction of it while Noah threw a couple snowballs at me and dug in the snow but then he added the arms, nose, eyes and buttons and I have to say we have a pretty handsome snowman greeting everyone that walks in our front door.

Oh and as soon as he was complete Noah really wanted to knock him down, but I talked him into waiting until tomorrow.

Our Little Pilot

2011-01-26T21:15:00.001-06:00

I didn't realize until yesterday when Noah and I were needing something a little new to entertain us that he has started to gather a collection of 'dress-up' clothes, mostly past Halloween costumes but always fun to dress up an pretend.

Any cheap and easy, throw together (items around the house) costumes you all could share for me to add to the collection?

Snow Fun

2011-01-20T16:01:00.000-06:00

Here is a little taste of the winter we are having here with all of our snow.

And no laughing at me (the 26 week pregnant momma) trying to get the sled to go! :-)

We are in for it

2011-01-18T21:37:00.000-06:00

if Noah's little brother is just as cute and charming as he is!!

I am not entirely sure what his intentions were with these poses but he is just so darn cute and silly that I had to share!

Nesting

2011-01-06T20:15:00.000-06:00

I am at week 25 now and boy do I have a feeling I am going to get big AND the nesting stage has begun. I sat down tonight and David and I made a list of what needs to be brought in from garage storage and what needs to be moved out of the current guest room, that will become the nursery, and what needs to be moved out of the office in order for the office to double as a guest room!!
Luckily our shopping list isn't that big just a couple items we are using Noah's crib and a dresser and chair from my room growing up so that helps with the big pieces of furniture. I hope to post pictures along the way or at least when the rooms are completed.
While cleaning/organizing the office tonight I came across a couple boxes of my old high school pictures and pictures of our college years. Now I love to scrapbook but not that far back! What do I do with these boxes of pictures? Any suggestions?....it seems dumb to leave them in boxes and put them in storage but then again I am not really missing them, I suppose someday our kids might like to see them and make fun of us.....? Yikes, what to do, what to do?

Christmas 2010 (aka: a lot of pictures)

2011-01-05T22:03:00.000-06:00

I bet you didn't know dinosaurs and Lightening McQueen were at the birth of Jesus.

Noah probably trusting his parents a little too much by getting into that box and letting us push him down the small hill in our yard.

Almond bark goodness and a Christmas movie.

Our first Christmas morning in our home!!

Noah loves opening presents - he helped everyone unwrap.

A dishtowel and hockey sticks make a great batman costume...at least that is what a certain 3-year old told me.

More presents!!

How many adults does is take to put together a puzzle for ages 3+ (sorry ladies, I had to give you a hard time)

A little bit of lacing with aunties.

A little bit of wrestling with Papa

Plugging into Dad's iTouch.

The family (minus Rami)

Noah and baby Jack! (I can't wait to see him with his little brother, hopefully he will still be smiling)

Max, Noah and Gus!

Can You Kung-Fu?

2010-12-14T12:35:00.002-06:00

Okay so I should have written Karate but it didn't rhyme, just enjoy the picture - I do!!

Fun with friends

2010-12-11T13:05:00.000-06:00

We had a little get together last week with friends, food and SUGAR. The kids (and adults) had a great time decorating cookies for the season.

Any Snow Will Do

2010-12-06T20:13:00.000-06:00

Noah was so excited last week when he woke up and saw some flurries of snow gathering on the ground. He ran into our bedroom with excitement saying, 'Daddy, Daddy SNOW!' There wasn't much on the ground but we made the most of it.

The snow is all gone now but we hope to see it again soon.

Gingerbread Houses

2010-12-01T22:13:00.000-06:00

A family tradition for David's family is decorating gingerbread houses every year. David and I were even able to spread that tradition to Texas for the last five years but this year we brought it back to the Mom and Dad's and it was Noah's first year to really get into it. (I will also mention, although I don't like to, the tradition was broken last year, shh - don't tell)

Happy Birthday Noah!!

2010-11-29T19:17:00.000-06:00

Our little guy is 3 years old today. We celebrated with friends and family on Saturday. Noah requested a Cars (Disney) birthday. We had a great time.

Adams Homestead and Nature Preserve

2010-11-15T11:26:00.000-06:00

Saturday we went out to 'Christmas at the Homestead' there are several old buildings (farmhouse, schoolhouse, chapel and barn) and they were all decked out for Christmas. There was caroling, crafts for the kids, cookies, hot chocolate - just a good afternoon in some fresh air and being together.

All Saints Sunday, Joining Our Church, Noah's Baptism

2010-11-07T21:36:00.000-06:00

A jammed pack Sunday - and beautiful weather to go with it.

All Saints Sunday - remembering the ones that have gone on before us.

Grandma Esther and Grandpa Walter Ring (sadly I don't have a pic digitally of G-ma Ring) (David's maternal grandparents)

My Aunt Celia Gubser one of the women I walked in memory of at the Dallas/Fort Worth Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer 3Day Walk November 2009. (again no digital pic)

Grandma Ambolene and Grandpa Ellis Shelton (my paternal grandparents, and the G-pa that Noah was named after)

Our family joined our church this Sunday and Noah was baptized, it was a beautiful service and Noah was awesome.
I thought it was a wonderfully 'ironic' to become committed to a church and commit to raising Noah in a Christian home/community on the same day we were honoring those who have helped shape and guide us in our Christian faith. I feel truly blessed!

Menu!!

2010-11-02T09:00:00.001-05:00

Yes, that means the queasy feelings are almost gone - thank goodness. I don't feel like eating just anything but atleast I can think about what to make and make a grocery list!

Happy Halloween!

2010-11-01T14:44:00.000-05:00

We had a wonderful Halloween this year and the weather even warmed up for us, so we couldn't have asked for more. Noah did a great job at saying 'trick or treat and thank you'.

Noah loves the idea of carving pumpkins but not so much actually getting the seeds and pulp out, maybe next year.

There was trick or treating in the dorms on Wednesday so we took Noah - good thing it was all inside because it was freezing out. Funny story one girl told Noah he was cute and his response, 'I know.' Got to love the kid.

We walked around with Buck-o and some friends on Saturday evening.

Love this pic.

We also walked Noah around our block on Sunday night - that's right 3 nights of trick or treating!! We got our use out of the costume and we are up to our elbows in candy!

Pumpkinland

2010-10-27T21:38:00.000-05:00

We enjoyed Pumpkinland with Grandma and Buck-o a couple of weeks ago, the weather was beautiful. Corn maze, pumpkins, hay bales, animals to pet and hold, lots of fun to be had.

My baby boy is getting so big!

The Bump is Back

2010-10-26T21:21:00.000-05:00

Well my tummy popped a little earlier than it did with Noah. When I was pregnant with Noah I took a picture of my tummy every (well almost) week for his scrapbook and in hopes that 'Tomato-Tomato' ,being the second child, won't feel slighted we are trying to keep up the tradition of the weekly bump pics. This week Noah wanted to show us his tummy too!

Oh and other exciting news: Did you notice the blue waist band on Noah? He has been in 'big boy' underwear for over 3 weeks!!! We are very excited and so proud of him. (he of course still wears a pull up at night but he always wakes up dry)

Firefighter Noah to Save the Day!

2010-10-22T20:59:00.001-05:00

Not sure why but he insists on wearing the hat backwards, he's still pretty darn cute!

*Check out my Sweet Elder blog for how I made it!!

Happy Birthday Great Grandpa!

2010-10-18T21:45:00.000-05:00

A couple of weekends ago we were able to celebrate the birthday of my Grandpa, Noah's Great Grandpa. It was a beautiful Fall day. We roasted hot dogs, ate homemade pumpkin and apple pies, ate outside and enjoyed the company of family. Noah was very excited to go to Grandma and Papa's (my parents home) and doubly (is that a word) excited to celebrate a birthday (anyone's birthday). Noah enjoyed the day playing with cousins he barely knows but played with them like they see each other everyday, having adventures on Papa's farm, helping Great Grandpa with his presents and blowing out his candles and of course eating!

I was proud and overjoyed when my uncle gathered us up to pray before we dug into our feast when Noah after hearing the words 'let's say the blessing' started in on 'Oh the Lord is good to me'. He didn't hesitate when no one else joined in and sang loud and clear through the whole blessing giving a excited 'Hallujah, Hallujah, AMEN!' My heart was bursting.

Later that day as we drove home and I reflected on the day I was happy to know that moving back to Iowa has put us closer to family and that Noah will grow up knowing his cousins, grandparents and the GREAT-grandparents and how important family has and is to my life.

Fall Fun Pics!

2010-10-16T22:29:00.000-05:00

My handsome men!!

Some yard work!

I'm Going To Be...

2010-10-07T19:30:00.000-05:00

a BIG BROTHER!!!

That is right, Noah is going to be a big brother in April. We are expecting our second child and wanted to share the news. I am twelve weeks along and feeling pretty good. It has been a bit of a different pregnancy than Noah's but some of my dear friends have had worse so I can't complain. A bit quesy but no sickness - but that is starting to wear off, hopefully it will go away completely.

We had our first appointment on Tuesday and baby looks good, everything is looking GREAT!! Here is our little tomato-tomato!

One, Two, Three JUMP!

2010-09-20T19:39:00.000-05:00

Noah loves to jump on our bed and we usually let him. He has made up a new game where either David or I lay down and he jumps over us. As you can tell by the pictures I don't really trust my son and I am afraid one of us is going to get hurt but so far no injuries and plus it gives us a chance to lay down and play with Noah without doing a thing!!

Daddy's Turn!

(this is probably my favorite)

Mommy and Noah Day

2010-09-19T19:48:00.000-05:00

As you all know I stay at home with Noah now and work three mornings a week so it has been an adjustment to be a stay at home mom after being the one that left every morning 5 days a week. I love being with Noah but I am not very good at the staying home part so Noah and I are taking many adventures in the Siouxland area are challenge usually is to make them FREE adventures. Here is an adventure we took a couple weeks ago to the Dorothy Pecaut Nature Center.

There were lots of hands on items.

Some live frogs, honey bees and fish.

These are the honey bees:

And a fun little area just to be a kid: block, books, discovery bottles.

It was not a huge place, not a place you could really spend more than an hour at (atleast not for Noah's age). We did see a live turkey outside in the woods but was gone by the time I got my camera out. There are trails around the center too.

Popcorn Day

2010-09-19T18:53:00.000-05:00

A couple of weekends ago we went down to my parents house spent the night and then enjoyed a local towns Popcorn Day! We woke up early to go see the tractors in the tractor cruise, had lunch in the park (most of Noah's lunch consisted of cotton candy), enjoyed the parade (giving us more candy) and then dinner at my parent's house before heading home. It was a beautiful weekend.

We Are Still Here!

2010-08-25T17:05:00.000-05:00

Wow, time has flown by the last couple of weeks. Lot's of happenings in our home and lives. The biggie - the end of summer!! Can you believe it? Here is the quick points:

David:
- new faculty trainings and workshops (3 weeks worth)
- FINALLY, the completion of campus office and I FINALLY get lots and lots of books out of the house!
- first day of classes as Professor Elder!! - he told me he has felt like such an 'imposter', I told him he was made for this job!
- met Monday night with the men's group from the church we have been attending to pizza and beer - had a great time.

Me (Rebekah):
- started my job on Monday (23rd), great bunch of kids - I am still trying to dust out the cobwebs from my brain but really a great first couple of days, three year olds don't really notice the cobwebs!
- accomplished my first ever canning!!! Check out my Sweet Elder blog for recipe and pics!
- finding my 'nitch' at being a stay at home mom - I do love it but Noah can be just as stubborn as me

Noah:
- his last molers are coming in
- started daycare three mornings a week while I am at work. He seems to enjoy it, no crying at drop off atleast.
- he has picked up some kung fu moves, which he 'tries' on mommy every once and awhile (we watched Kung Fu Panda for family movie night)
- sat through one whole church service!!
- has been playing more imaginative play, mostly with the lego men

- went to the Omaha Zoo with mom and left Dad home sick!

As A Family:

- We have moved Noah's room upstairs. For 4 nights in a row is insisted on sleeping in the guest room and we let him and after night 4 I told him if he was going to sleep upstairs that we were going to move all of his things up too. So on Sunday we made the move.

- David and I attended a beginning of school faculty party at the Dean's home- met lots of great people!

- attended a Sioux City Exploreres Baseball game, beautiful night and Noah made it through the 5th inning

So there's a catch up for you all! Hope all is well!

Welcome to the Family

2010-08-10T21:41:00.000-05:00

A little update we have a new member of our family: Jim. Jim is a friend of ours from college and when he heard we were moving back to the area asked us if we would be interested in renting out our basement. We said, 'absolutely!' with no hesitation. He has been a great addition to our family and Noah L-O-V-E-S him. So just thought I would fill you in on that because I am sure I will refer to Jim from time to time!

(sunset after the thunderstorm on Sunday night)

On other events, David has started his position at Morningside with a couple weeks of trainings and has enjoyed every minute of it. We have met some great people. Couldn't ask for a better community.

We have settled into a church and trying to find our nitch, but it has been a long time since we have felt at peace about a church and feeling 'fed'.

Noah and I have been hanging out, while David has been at work and I am loving every moment even the struggles. I feel good. I will start work next week at a Preschool teacher three morning a week and Noah will be going to an in home day care near by.

Lots of new things happening. We are really enjoying ourselves here and I am truely at peace when I say this is home - it has been a long time since I have been able to call a place home and know that this is where I am putting down roots!

Baughman's from Texas Visit

2010-08-02T19:40:00.000-05:00

Some of our best friends from Texas visited us last week and we had a great time just hanging out and seeing all the NW Iowa had to offer....

Bedtimes were always an adventure. The first night we started out with Noah and Sylvia in the same room, with little expectations that it would actually work. Let's just say the rest of the week Noah had his room to himself.

We went to Orange City to visit David's parents, show them Northwestern College, Windmill Park, The Old Factory for Pour Over Coffee and of course ate at Pizza Ranch. Oh and cooled off with ice cream and the sprinkler.

It is very hard for Rachel and I to find a picture of us together since one of us is usually behind a camera but we got one!

We visited Sgt. Floyd on the Missouri River in Sioux City.

"I'm King of the World"

In the middle of the week we invited all of our Iowa/College/OC friends to grill out at our house and meet the Baughman's. Of course it rained all afternoon but we had a great time. Number of adults: 17 children: 15 with 2 on the way! Can you say full house, we are almost outnumbered.

We also went to my parents house for lunch, drove through Farragut, messed around on the farm. All the kids rode the lawn mower with me, it was a pretty big hit.

And though not an awesome picture of myself plus, Noah and Sylvia are to their limits this is the only group picture we got the whole week.

We had a great time and are already thinking about a trip next year with some meeting up in between most likely!

Mosquitos, Please Go Away

2010-08-02T19:00:00.000-05:00

Today, David started 'officially' his job at Morningside College and I 'officially' became a stay-at-home mom! Noah and I joined David for his walk to work - since it was rainy/wet from last nights storms it would proabably be the only time outside today. But not only was it rainy/wet the mosquitos were out in full force! We all got several bites but Noah's bites welt up - check out the one right under his eye! Pour fella.

Other than the mosquitos we had a pretty good day. I do have to share this 'melt my heart moment'. Noah had gotten in trouble for throwing a block at me (that is not the 'melt my heart moment') and as I sat down to talk to him about why he was in trouble, if he would like his mommy or a friend to throw a block at him, and how that would make him feel. I also asked him what he thinks he should say to me to make me feel better, his response, 'mommy can you play blocks with me, because you are my best friend', wraps his little arms around me in a huge hug and asks me, 'Are you happy now?'

I have recently been asked if it is hard to discipline Noah (because he is so darn cute and such a stinker) - I guess there is your answer.

July Pics

2010-07-23T22:29:00.000-05:00

Finding a cicada shell - we were pretty suprised he picked it up.

Trips to DQ after dinner.

Snuggles!

Shaving cream, great activity for kids ;-)

Trying to convince Noah that haircuts don't hurt and if he would just sit still it wouldn't take that long.

Noah - "Like Jr." (referring to Jr. Asparagus on Veggie Tales and how he wears his hat.)

Painting rocks.

Proving us liars - he does play by himself.

Hope everyone is enjoying their summer!

The Legos Have Invaded

2010-07-14T15:10:00.000-05:00

David pulled out his cherished childhood tub-o-legos this week. And it has been fun for all, yes I will admit to building a few trucks, spaceships and accessorizing the entire lego army with heads, legs and helmets. But I will have to say that what I heard Noah ask David today after nap will probably rank up there with the absolute best things a daddy could hear his little boy say, "Can we play with Legos now, Daddy? Please."

4th of July Weekend

2010-07-06T22:25:00.000-05:00

We didn't see any fireworks this year, a little bummed but in the long run know that it wasn't worth keeping Noah up and dragging him across town to see them this year. We will have many more years to celebrate. We did splash around in the kiddie pool we got Noah. And can anyone tell me when my baby became a little boy? Look at the face, and those eyes!

We finally went to the Milwaukee Wiener House here in Sioux City after the Farmers Market on Saturday. It was fun, very old timey made me think of what a simplier time might have been like. You know instead of just about anything you can think of on the menu, they had the basics: hot dog, chili dog, hamburger, cheeseburger, soda, pie, chips and all at a good price (cash only). The guys working there all wore those paper hats that you might see at an old diner. Hope you enjoy our 'stuffing face' shots!

Noah and I drove down to mom and dads (aka Grandma and Papa's) on Monday and enjoyed lunch and hanging out. Emily (my older sister) and her husband Rami came up from Kansas City. And my grandpa was there too! It was great to see everyone and a change of scenery. Noah of course when he woke up on Monday morning and I told him we were going to Grandma and Papas the first thing he asked was, 'to ride the tractor?' Papa didn't get his tractor out but a spin on the lawn mower was just as good for Noah. You can't tell in the picture but it is raining when Papa took Noah on the lawn mower, he really can't tell his only grandchild no, can he?

Noah seemed to think that Great Grandpa's walker was a pretty good jungle gym as long as Great Grandpa didn't let go!

And we did some cooking in the kitchen this weekend, Noah loves to help us in the kitchen. Check out my Sweet Elder blog for more pics of Noah helping in the kitchen, that is if you want to.

He does a lot of this when we are cooking. Noah helped make a meatloaf, shuck corn, snap green beans, bake bread and make a cheesecake this weekend! Let me just say that we ate well this weekend!

Farmers Market and CSAs

2010-07-01T13:57:00.000-05:00

Well I have been inspired by friends (Kerry at Taste A Little of the Summer) and family to get more into gardening, outdoors, good food, vegetables. I have been playing around with the idea of joining a CSA (community supported agriculture) basically you buy into a 'share' or a local farmers produce and each week we would receive a box of fresh, local, in season produce from the farmer. Being a lover of outdoors, farming and growing up from a family of farmers and gardeners but not having the space (until recently) for a garden or the time I figured a CSA is the best option. (I hope to start a square foot garden next year, when we are more settled)

We found a local CSA here in Sioux City, which is The Cornucopia out of Sioux Center, they have a stand at the Farmers Market and we went down on Wednesday morning to talk with the farmer, get a little more information and an idea about what to expect. We had a great talk and sense we are in the middle of the season we decided it wouldn't be worth the money to join now (we were okay with that, we will join next season) BUT the farmer has what they call a Carrot Card basically we paid and have a line of credit with them and she also told us about the livestock that they raise (poultry and pork) and they have a butcher date coming up for their Berkshire Pork....are are going to buy half a hog worth of meat!

I am excited about supporting local farmers, getting fresh, local produce and meat and the challenge of (because it will be) eating more with the season that veggies are at their prime. If anyone has some great recipes please share and any that I come up with I will share on my Sweet Elder blog and check out Taste a Little of the Summer .

Summertime!

2010-06-22T16:58:00.000-05:00

It is hot here, but I will have to say it is not as hot as it would be if we were still in Texas! Hope you are all enjoying your summer vacation too! (Isn't he the cutest little bugger ever!?!?)

Noah's makeshift pool for one! (and our new fence in the background, love it)

Lots Going On

2010-06-15T19:35:00.000-05:00

Homeownership is treating us fairly well. We love having a home and something we are able to call ours and make our own. Here are a few projects that have been started some finished some in progress still.

The yard has some nice landscaping but it is what I call 'hard' landscaping, mostly rocks some hostas, a few burberry bushes and what I believe is a holly bush. Anyway, we took out the burberry bushes, they are beautiful but they have thorns and that is the last thing I need Noah getting into. Some far we have planted a rhubarb plant (love strawberry rhubarb pie), day lillies (I am not sure they are going to make it, Noah kept pulling them out) and a hydranga (not sure about that spelling and not sure that it is going to make it either). It was a going away gift and it got a little fried in the cab of the u-haul on the way from Texas.

We started removing some of the rock and we plan to seed it with grass seed and that will give us a few more feet of usable yard and less rock. In the rock section at the top left of this photo below is where the rhubard is and we hope to remove more rock and make it a small garden (that is on next years list of to-dos).

This project is still in progress because this is the first dry day we have had in over a week. David and I worked some more on it today - we love being outside in our yard.

Okay, don't worry it didn't snow in June. This picture is from March when we put in our offer to buy. But I am showing you this picture because our house sits on a corner and the backyard sits between the back of the house (which you see here) and our garage and runs along the street. With small children and a dog first thing on our to-do list was to put up a fence.

We have some great friends who own their own contracting business and we hired them to fence in our backyard. They did an awesome job and we L-O-V-E it. It looks great, we can let Molly (our dog) out and we don't have to worry about Noah running into the street when we are all in the backyard.

Noah said he was supervising, such a little handy man!

This curio cabinet was my grandparents, I remember exactly where it sat in there home. Well anyway, my aunt offered it to us when we bought the house and I was so excited. We plan on putting it in our dining room. It was a deep red color with a brushed black over it. It was cute but I wanted to clean it up about and make it a little more classic I guess. The glass on the bottom was also broken so I need to either replace it or I have thought about putting in a piece of fabric...that might not make since but it makes since in my mind. So for the last two day I have been spray painting it black but I have left the inside this deep red, I think I like it that way. It is still a work in progress, I will keep you posted. (I also have two other pieces of furniture that I am updating/refinishing) Fun times!

Going Away and Packing Up

2010-06-14T22:48:00.000-05:00

And so it began, about 4 weeks ago. We got serious about packing out things, parties were thrown in our honor (I think Texas was happy to get rid of us), I finished up work at the school, and we said 'see you later' to friends...because we will see Texas again and again.

A going away party, and I know more pictures were taken but

obviously not with our camera. But we had a wonderful time

and it was a great break from packing.

Some people were really worried that we would forget them.....

Noah and Kenzie had lots of fun running around in the big U-Haul.

Too bad it was taking us away from one our best friends. We miss you neighbors!

We had to say lots of good byes to wonderful friends and family.

Catchin' up is hard to do...

2010-05-30T21:00:00.000-05:00

We are here! Our new house is wonderful and all of it is very exciting. I am happy to say that all the packing, traveling, unpacking, settling is going very smoothly. We have had AMAZING help in Texas and Iowa and prayers and support the whole way, a BIG thank you to everone, we could not have made it to this point without you!
I hope to have pictures soon. I realize that I should have taken pictures before we moved anything into the house, you know blank slate and then pictures when I think we finally get rooms the way we would like them....like that will ever happen. If anyone knows me I like to move furniture. Anyway we got unloaded and the first goal was to get Noah's room completed so when Grandma and Buck-o got him here all of his things would be in their places and he would feel comfortable. That worked out splendid, we actually went ahead and set up his twin bed and put his toddler bed in the garage, out of sight out of mind! He hasn't said one word about not have his 'little' bed, thank goodness. Noah has transistioned pretty well, he is tired - but aren't we all - and he loves being outside.
David and I are feeling really good about how much we got done yesterday, thanks to friends who stuck with us all day and unpacked box after box. We have also done some shopping....love that and our list keeps growing on more things to do or buy or whatever! Again I hope to have pics soon...I promise.

Our Moving Crew

2010-05-22T22:42:00.000-05:00

We are packing, this picture was taken about a week ago but that is pretty much what it looks like around here...I like to call it organized, FUN, sometimes stressful, chaos!! We are so excited to move closer to family and a new adventure but torn and sadden by the friends and 'family' that we are leaving in Texas. Carla is in town to join in and Mom and Dad (Shelton) arrive on Monday. The U-Haul is reserved and our second bathroom is no longer being used as a bathroom but storage for a mixture of boxes, newspapers and containers all awaiting items to be packed. We have cleaned our cupboards and inventoried the fridge and freezer for meals the next few days. I have made a list of things to get done and we have already marked off a few items...wow, this is real.

Absent...

2010-05-12T19:20:00.000-05:00

I have to apoligize for the lack of blogging that I have been doing lately. We are in the final two weeks of finishing up jobs here in Texas and packing up and getting everything in line to move back to Iowa!! We are super exciting but I don't have much time or energy to upload pics and fill you in on all that is going on. Please forgive me and you will be hearing from us soon.