Family Camp

Due to Jeremy having a new job he hasn't had any vacation time. So, we wanted to do something special for Labor Day since he got Monday off. We went to Family Camp at High Hill Christian Camp (near St. Louis, MO). My family had a tradition of going to Family Camp for many years at Lamoine so I was super excited. The kids were also very excited. Titus actually slept in the Friday we left, but Grace came in and woke me up dragging me out of bed with anticipation. She refused to eat breakfast until her suitcase was packed.

It was a really great weekend. One of the fun things we got to do was reconnect with some very dear friends of ours. The Chesnut family manages the camp and it had been a year since we had seen them. Their kids are all getting so grown up! We worked with them back before we were dating at Lamoine Christian Camp. We also got to see the Spikereit family. Damien married us and we hadn't seen them for six years! The last time we saw them Josie was a newborn and she is now in first grade, and we had never met their youngest, Hudson. And of course they were surprised to meet all 3 of our kids as well.

The weekend was a great time to spend some fun quality time as a family. The weather was gorgeous and even almost cold at times. It definitely felt like fall. We love spending time outdoors and don't get to do it enough. We also had a chance to reflect on the season of parenting we are in. While we currently had our hads and laps full it won't be long before our kids are big enough to venture out and play with friends, entertaining themselves. I'm really enjoying this stage and trying to love every minute!

I think the most surprising aspect of the weekend was how seeing old friends caused us to reflect on where we've been and what God is currently doing in our lives. Sometimes it is a bit (yeah, just a bit) crazy around our house and that makes meaningful conversation a challenge. After the kids were in bed Jeremy and I sat on the porch and chatted, it was one of my favorite parts of the weekend. It makes me wonder what we will be doing next year for Labor Day weekend. We are really searching yet uncertain where God will have lead us even a year from now. But, I'm excited (and a little hesitant) to find out!

Paddle Boat Fun
Damien blobs Lilly- She flew!
Grace & Josie wait for a paddle boat.
Finding acorns and playing in the dirt. (Favorite activity of the weekend)
Paddle boat with Daddy, Grace, & Josie.
Hudson checks out Titus.Jeremy give AnnaLeah a hard time.
Faith having fun in the bounce house.
Humiston clan matching bandanas.
The girls loved climbing on the bunk beds in our room, although I wasn't brave enough to let one of them actually sleep on the top bunk.
Making smores.
Love this picture-I hope her life is always this centered on the cross.
Us & The Spikereits
The train- this was so cute and the kids loved it!
Faith had fun playing in the dirt.
Titus enjoyed lots of time in the backpack.
Grace driving her train car.

Great food, friends, fireworks, swimming, paddle boats, bounce house, playground, train, games, preaching, music, getting dirty, gorgeous weather, and family time wrapped into one weekend = amazing memories.

If you have a camp that does family camp near you you should totally give it a try- I guarantee you'll want to make it your new family tradition.

Titus' First Tooth

I really thought Titus would end up getting his first tooth the weekend of the wedding. But, it took just a bit longer. His first tooth popped through on September 2nd, with his second coming right behind it.
I was glad I got a picture because his mouth already looks like this:

His second tooth arrived a week later on Sept. 9th. (Hard to see in the pics, but believe me there are two- I've had the grumpy baby to prove it.)

Happy Birthday to Me

My husband did an AMAZING job of making my birthday a special day. He was very creative! With a little brainstorming we came up with a plan for him and the girls to make me a homemade ice cream cake. We tried to make it as close to a DQ cake as possible. It turned out amazing and it might just be a new birthday tradition. I'm sure you can tell from the picture it was seriously yummy. They even decorated it with icing. It said MOM on the top.


For my birthday gift Jeremy helped my two little artists make me two original pieces of art. They turned out amazing! I seriously love them. I especially loved how much work he went to to do something creative. Art projects are usually my department. You can see from the pics the girls were very willing helpers. After Titus woke up from his nap we added his foot print to one of the pieces so he would be included too.




Jeremy told me afterwards he was trying to convince the girls to splatter the paint. While doing this Grace took the brush and began painting the canvas telling him, "Dad there is an easier way to do that."

The finished product:

Cody & Erin's Wedding

Cody & Erin's wedding was a very hectic day for our family! But, I was so glad the kids got to be a part of their special day. I was quite surprised that the kids all happily made it down the aisle, without hesitation. They were also fairly cooperative for pictures- yeah! On the drive to the reception they all napped so they ended up having lots of fun coloring, spending time with cousins, and dancing at the reception.

I think the funniest moment of the day was courtesy of Faith. Before the wedding I was helping my sister with pictures. (She was the official photographer for the wedding-and did an amazing job!) Anyway, Josie came and asked me if I had extra clothes for Faith as she had a potty accident. I headed down to the cry room where my dad & Jeremy were watching our children. I walked in and they were chatting away. I asked where Faith was I thought she had an accident. Well, there she was still in her dress with no panties on. They had no idea. Upon further investigation I found Jake cleaning up a wet spot at the front of the church! Apparently the girls had been running out of the cry room back and forth to the hall burning off extra energy. No one knew they were going in the nearby sanctuary. Faith had an accident right about where my brother would stand just hours later. Just mere inches from the brand new white aisle runner all ready to go for the wedding. I didn't know wether to panic or laugh my head off. We got it cleaned up and no one was the wiser...2 funny.

My camera was on loan for the day to Josie so I just have limited pics, but here are a few of my favorites. I was super disappointed I didn't get a family picture or any with just Grace, Faith, & Titus. Erin was a gorgeous bride and my sister got some amazing pictures of her & my brother.

This is the unity candle I made for the wedding:

Even though the day was hectic it was a lot of fun too. I am very excited to have a new sister added to our family.

Wedding Rehearsal

The rehearsal for Cody's wedding went great. Titus loved riding in his wagon and Grace took her job of wheeling him down the aisle very seriously. Her biggest concern was him stealing her flower petals from her basket that sat in front of him. We walked through everything a couple times and I was hopeful that they would do it again the next day for the wedding. I was excited we got a new family picture as I had picked out coordinating outfits for us to wear.
The girls had new outfits from Papa & Gramy to wear and they were excited to match Uncle Cody with his purple shirt & tie. They were also excited about their gifts matching bags that said flower girl with wedding themed coloring & story books.

Uncle Cody & Aunt Erin,

Thank you for including us in your big day. We loved having a special job!

Love,

Grace, Faith & Titus

My Imagination Movers

The girls have such a great imagination and I love seeing what they come up with! Recently we bought a shop vac and Jeremy decided to turn the box into a house for the girls to play in. It started a small house made of one box. The girls added the flag to give it a clubhouse look. Then we purchased two new air cleaners so we had more boxes. So.....one night after the kids were in bed we turned their clubhouse into this. (with a little help from duct tape)
It had a little cubbie where they made a doll bed and we added this light as a "chandelier."
They are really into the "club house" concept. One afternoon while Jeremy was working in the back yard they turned the back of daddy's truck into a clubhouse.
They worked hard to organize and clean their little "house."

I love the creative mind of a child!