Benny's Boo Boo

Snipes and snails and puppy dog tails, that's what little boys are made of...  And the inevitable trip to the ER...

It was bound to happen at some point.  Thankfully, nothing too serious.  A cut under his chin requiring 6 stitches.  How did it happen?  Truly not a great story.  He was brushing his teeth, fell off his stool, and hit his chin on the counter top.

He was such a good boy about getting the stitches.  He didn't move a muscle.  I was holding him and told him to close his eyes.  He was honestly so still, I thought he might have fallen asleep.  (The advantage of getting your stitches at midnight...)

We made this video for our friends who wanted to see Benny's boo-boo.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AIxFwu67dfE

He got the stitches out yesterday.  Benny is all better!

Cousin Fun

Benny is at that wonderful age where having other kids to play with is TOTALLY AWESOME!  We are blessed that Benny has the best cousins in the world :)  Back in June, Caleb, his Mommy, and baby sister came into town.  Caleb + Benny = quite the dynamic duo.  My two favorite memories from the weekend:

1) Benny yelling from the bathroom---"Grammie, you need to come wipe Caleb!  He pooped!  He needs wiped!  I couldn't get it.  I tried."

2) Both of them running around the yard with their underwear on.  Benny might have been chasing after Caleb with the garden hose while poor Caleb was left in very soggy tighty-whities :)

One fun event while Caleb was in town was a trip to Kiddie Park.

Claire loved the rides too :)

Best. Picture. Ever.

At some point over the weekend, we climbed into Captain Al's fancy red race car.  KA-CHOW!

Claire was delighted with sweet Miss Katrina.

Grampie had a well manicured lawn :)

True cousin love is best expressed by sharing a popsicle...

and McDonald's french fries.

Sherwood Ohio

Two weeks ago, the kids and I set out by ourselves to visit Uncle Eric, Aunt Katie, Clay, and Alethea in their new home in the great metropolis of Sherwood Ohio.  By metropolis, I mean that they live next to their church and a family that owns a llama!  The biggest excitement on our 3 day stay was when some tractors and farm equipment drove by and when we went to the McDonald's playplace (we had to drive about 12 miles to get there, but it was well worth the trip.)

Sherwood Ohio might not make the top 10 list of most popular destinations, but it does in my book.  My kids and I had a great time.  4 kids ages 3 and under make for lots of fun :)  The best part?  My children slept.  Yes.  All night.  My children are notorious for sleeping downright terrible when we are away from home.  But not this time.  The farm-fresh air lulled them right to sleep.

I consider Sherwood Ohio the ultimate vacation destination!  We are going to have to go back sometime soon.  The next time Aunt Katie and I are going to take the 4 kids with us to the Bar.  That's right.  Sherwood Ohio is proud owner of the Dairy Bar :)

Could they get any cuter!?

A Summer Stroll

I'm convinced that I'm not biased.  She is adorable.  She spent the afternoon chasing Daddy and Benny around while they mowed the grass :)

https://youtu.be/D2ON3xGJ24w

Go Little Lady!

This past week, Claire loves to push this cart around.  She laps our kitchen/dining room/living room area over and over again.  Someone just needs to teach her how to steer :)

http://youtu.be/zqmz5S0xFnA

Easter 2015

I love music on Easter Sunday.  Terrific brass, organ, and choir music to celebrate the triumph of Jesus over death!  (Although, its probably the only Sunday a year that I feel stressed about church.)  Nevertheless, what a privilege I have to play music to praise our great God!  We had a wonderful family time too.  Here are pics to remember the fun :)

A chilly but sunny day for the community Easter egg hunt.

Chillin' with the Bunny

He's a big kid now.

Brooke wore this dress to our wedding nearly 10 years ago!  

Happy 85th Birthday Nana!

Here is our 3rd annual Happy Birthday Nana photo!  Here is just an abbreviated list of the reasons we love Nana:

1) She makes awesome pancakes and sausage---even made into the shape of Franklin!
2) She always has cookies!
3) Most of the time she has a bowl of chocolate candies in her kitchen.
4) Benny is really good at saying 'please.'  Thus, Nana is more than happy to give Benny above mentioned cookies and candy :)
5) At age 85, she still gets down on the floor to play with Benny and Claire.  (I hope I can do that when I'm 85...)

The list could go on and on...  Really, what's not to love about our sweet Nana!  Just yesterday, Benny got all of our sprinkles out.  I asked him what he was planning to do with all those sprinkles.  His reply?  "I'm going to go bake cookies with Nana."  Obviously.

This year features Benny spreading Birthday cheer!

http://youtu.be/CNA37y3RZK4