Livin' at the pool and the little league field!

So I havent done very well updating my blog lately... we have been super busy up until this week... but since then, we have been hanging out at these 2 places:

Livin' it up at the Pool!

Here is my little motor-boat... he gets anywhere he needs to go just kicking away...

The 3 amigos... they have a blast together! All 3 are swimming really well this summer, so the pool is pretty easy for me! This has been my first "easy" summer in 7 years! :o)

My Goggle-Eyed Friends

Crazy Boys!

Livin' at the Little League Field....

Micah is rocking it out in Coach-pitch baseball... he gets a good hit on the 1st or second pitch each time... even this past time when we needed a pitcher, not a belly-itcher... (clint filled in at the last minute as pitcher when the head coach couldnt make it to the game! :o))

Coby is ready to go! I had a pic of him batting, but the sunlight in the background messed it up... We can tell a huge difference in Coby's focus and catching abilities post-eye surgery!


Cason up to bat. He is so cute as he runs those bases with a big ol' grin!

Hope you all are having a great, realxing summer!!

Party at the Dell Diamond

So this was a few weeks ago, but I had to post these pics from Micah's end-of-the-year party at the Dell Diamond. We had loads of fun. Many poeple had a hard time believing that I really did the bungoe jumping thing, so here is my proof.... back flips and all! :o) I need not mention that I had difficulty even walking the next day from my sore muscles... who knew that the bungie jumping uses every single muscle in your body.... did you know that we have muscles in our armpits? Well, we do!

Here is Micah after he got up the nerve to try it out...

This was so fun... I scremaed like a little girl and felt like a kid again... until the next morning that is when I realized that I am an old lady!

One of my many back flips... they were more successful than my front flips. I did one or 2 of those, but my first one landed me on my head. A friend got it on video, so it may appear on YouTube someday.

The class looking out over the diamond... cool pic!

Camp Agape

Camp Agape was a smashing success!! Many long days and late nights go into the planning of camp, and it is always well-worth it! This year's theme was "I AM" and we told the story of Moses, the egyptian slaves, the burning bush, the plagues, the passover, and the exodus. Here is a pic of the kids around the cool pyramid that Clint built... the kids (slaves) made bricks out of clay, dirt, and hay and they laid them on the pyramid. By the end if the week, it looked really cool. I need to post an "after" picture.

(Quick disclaimer: I was in charge of the preschool department again this year, so I have zero pictures of my older 2 boys... I have a friend who is making me a CD of several that she took and I will post those when I get them. They had a blast, too!)

Lil' Bry stomping in the mud to make bricks with his cute little friend, Bree.

Cason helping make bricks... he didnt want to get his feet yukky!

The "line" of 2-year olds! Cuteness!

Daddy came to visit at slip n slide time!! What a treat!

Cason "focusing" during crafts.

My little dare-devil.... he was the only 2-year old to try it by himself!

Case-O on the big slip-n-slide

What a week!!

Lost and Found

My camera went mysteriously MIA last Thursday when I was gone to bunko. Luckily, it was found back behind the couch... in mint condition... and just in time for Camp Agape this week (more pictures to come soon). As I downloaded my pictures today, the mystery of the missing camera began to unfold......

Picture # 1: A (small) foot... I now have 4 suspects

Picture #2: Daddy is [so diligently watching the boys while mommy is away at bunko] sleeping in the recliner

Picture # 3: Ceiling fan

Picture #4: The rug and some body part...



Picture # 5: I have no clue

Picture # 6

I would recognize those baby blues anywhere! Mystery solved... almost...

Picture #7: My red-headed stinker and his Accomplice!!

Lookin' Good

Coby's eye is looking great! He feels good now and we have found it to be quite a challenge to keep him still and "inactive" per doctor's orders for a few more days! We go back to the doctor tomorrow for a post-op check up and to retest his vision. It could take up to 6 weeks for him to see the full effect of the surgery, but I am hoping and praying that he is at least able to see some of the 3-D images! It really scares me to think about him being 26 years old someday and behind the wheel of a car with out depth perception!

Here is a picture of him on day 5 after surgery:

And totally un-surgery-related... here is a sweet picture of the boys reading their bible story with daddy at bedtime. It is so cute how much they get "into" the stories at bedtime! Even Mr Bear got in on the fun... Mr Bear is from Coby's kindergarten class, and he came and surprised us this weekend! Micah brought him home on Friday and you would have thought Coby had won the lottery he was so excited! It was nice for him to have a friend as he "lounged around" this weekend!

Update on Coby

Just a quick update on my Coby... the surgery went great... he didnot want to leave mom and dad to go down the dreaded hallway... actually it took 3 adults to peel him off of me, kicking and screaming... leaving momma in tears.... but other than that, he did great! We will not see full results of the surgery for a few weeks as the brain responds and teaches the eyes to work together to produce a 3-D image. For now his vision is blurred and sometimes even double vision as his eyes learn to work together!

We are now just working on keeping him still and occupied theu the long weekend! :o) We have taken a picture each day to post on here "so Gigi can see how brave he is" as Coby puts it...

Post-surgery: Day 1 (Thursday) Ouch!

Day 2 (Friday) You can see the bruising on both sides here

Thanks to everyone who prayed for us! And a special thanks to our care group families for his "goody bag" of stuff to keep him occupied! He las played all the games, worked the puzzle and the lego set, and colored away in the giant coloring book! He loves it all!!

Prayers for Coby

We just had our last drop of clear liquid for the morning, and we are heading to the hospital for surgery on my sweet Coby's eyes. Please pray for a spirit of peace for him. He has been praying for this day for weeks. And pray that God give me that same spirit... to help me remember that even as I watch with brave, but bleary eyes as they take my baby away and go thru those double doors... even though I cant go with him and hold him or rub his back, God is right there by his side... and he is in control....
We will be in touch....
~Summer

Family Retreat 2008

So I am a bit late in posting these pics from Family Retreat last month, but better late than never. All the canoe pictures are on my mom's camera, so these will have to do for now... We had a blast as usual! We had a couple of minor injuries... which I guess is to be expected when you take 4 rowdy boys out in the wilderness and let them run free... but all in all it was a great weekend....

The first injury was when Bryson had a super-close encounter with the gravel path leading up to the mess hall... poor baby. He had muddy gravel up his nose, in his mouth, and embedded into his forehead.

The kids had a blast playing on these raft things. They are like portable docks. Here they are having fun with Ms Jackie, our children's minister. Clint was trying to convince the kids to push her in but they were all too nice!

For those of you who have not been to HEB camp, it is really cool that you drive in the river. It is like a creek part that you actually drive thru. The boys were excited to unbuckle their seat belts and hang out the windows and watch the water. Bry looks like a puppy dog in heaven right here!!

Coby "helping" daddy drive in the river

Bryson only did this same move about 50 times that afternoon. I think Mimi was sore the next day! (I cropped Mimi out of the picture per her request!)

The 3 Amigos... How cute are they??

Brinton, Bryson, and Darin - weeks apart in age... destined to be best buds!

Micah and Samantha

Daddy and Coby

Quentin and Cason

It was a great weekend.... but by the end, this is how we all felt:

** This is actually Bryson on the top bunk. It was the only bed that was totally enclosed so I knew he wouldnt roll of onto the concrete floors... but I was kinda fearful he would try to climb down in the middle of the night. I think he was so tired he slept great!!

And Just for FUN:

Here are Brinton and Bryson at Retreat 2007
And Retreat 2008

Lesson learned... it is easier to photograph immoblie 1-year olds that hyper active 2-year olds!!

Coby's Kindergarten Campout

Last weekend we went to Coby's Kindergarten Campout up on the school grounds. It was so much for himt o get to go and be the center of attention for an evening. He was so excited that he got to help put up the tent since Micah was not there. We roasted hot dogs, ate way too many s'mores, and had donuts and chocolate milk for breakfast the next morning... what more could a kid ask for?? :o)

He told me that his favorite part was the s'mores!

Coby and his teacher, Mrs. Allen

I am so bummed that this pic came out blurry... but here we are...

Camping pictures

These pics are from several weeks ago, but I am trying to catch up on posting... You may have read the post about the chair that we lost in the fire... well, here are a few more fun pictures of that camping trip... the weather was absolutely perfect and the boys had a blast. Every Friday, they ask if we can go camping again!

Here is my little Burrito at bedtime.... it got pretty cold on Saturday night... the wind was piercing the next morning!

The weather was warm enough for swimming, but the water was still freezing!! They had a good time splashing around some!

Cason was camera shy all weekend and when he saw the camera, he would run the other way, so I was lucky to get this quick shot of him!

Throwing rocks was a big highlight of the weekend!

Bryson spent hours beating on trees and the ground with his stick. He is all boy.

Here the boys are playing with "Hermie" a little worm they be-friended on Saturday. We made him a little home out of a cup for most of the day, but we decided to let him go back into nature for good. Coby thought he needed to go find his mommy because she would be sad if he was lost. I love that kid!