I've Got Peace Like a River . . .

A couple of weeks ago Darin shared a great lesson for Family Home Evening about peace and being peacemakers. He had everyone first draw a picture of something or somewhere that made them feel peaceful. I drew a lovely mountain scene with a small river flowing gently. Sarah drew candles warmly glowing. (Sorry, no visuals for us.)

Darin drew a picture of a tree swing.

Megan drew this lovely picture of a dove in flight.

Matthew drew a

pteranodon being burned to death by hot lava

from a nearby volcano

Ummmmm, that may explain some things! With very straight faces, we continued the lesson and had a nice (and, I'm sure, very effective) discussion about how we can bring peaceful feelings into our home more often. We concluded the lesson by singing "I Feel My Savior's Love" after which Matthew enthusiastically (but also very seriously) said, "That was the perfect song, cause, you know, it goes perfectly with this!" (pointing to his picture.) Huh? Giggle. Sigh. We'll probably need to have a lesson on this topic again. . .

Peace out

Whose Kid is THAT?

I love this boy.

Fall Egg Hunt

On one of his many scavenger hunts to the attic, Matthew discovered an Easter basket.  He decided we should definitely have an Easter egg hunt.  After being informed that it wasn't Easter, he declared a fall egg hunt was in order!  Jacob and I had a fun time sorting the plastic eggs (that had also been hiding in the attic) into "fall color" piles - orange and yellow.  Then the boys helped me stuff the eggs with some small candies.

We decided Megan would also enjoy the egg hunt so we spent some time at one of our favorite nature trails while waiting for her to return from school.

 Don't the eggs look pretty with the fall flowers and leaves?  

Rather than Easter baskets, we used the Halloween bags.  

Fun, fun, fun!

I think Matthew may have just started a new tradition for us.  As a side note, after sorting, stuffing, and waiting, Jacob decided he would rather ride his scooter than go on the egg hunt!  An hour after Megan and Matthew had found all the eggs and devoured the candy,  Jacob decided he was ready to look for the eggs!  Too late, buddy!  Maybe we'll have to do it all again tomorrow!

Potato "Leak" Soup Anyone?

This is what happens when you get a clumsy mama in the kitchen with leftover soup, tupperware, and that whole "burp the lid" thing!

Fall Fun with Family

Matthew(hereafter referred to as Matt so as to avoid confusion), Nicole, Daniel, and Liz came to visit last week. We had so much fun with them. The kids all had a great time together, and so did the adults! Warning: lots of pictures follow!

Decorating gingerbread men at Kitchen Kettle Village right before a yummy shopping spree for jams, jellies, salsas, sauces, etc. Yum!

Cherry Crest Adventure Farm - The farm with a "party up". Really. Just ask Jacob!

Pedal Karts: Matthew, Daniel, and Jacob were roaring around the track when Nicole decided to help Liz try it out. Liz was awesome! Megan, Matt, Nicole, and I all took turns on the "big kid" karts, too. It was so much fun!

Awesome slides: There were so many squeals and giggles from everyone riding down these slides. I want some in our backyard!

Absolutely "adoeaboe" chicks(according to Jacob). I think the rest of us thought they were pretty adorable, too. Have I mentioned that I want to own chickens one day?

Megan's new best friend: Daniel. He absolutely adored her and she was so sweet to him!

More fun at the farm:

Matthew and Daniel were great buddies, too. They climbed the tree, went hunting cheetahs (or cheetos if you ask Daniel), and even tied up our tree very securely:

Washington's Headquarters at Valley Forge:




Come again soon! We love you all!

Rochester

We are blessed to have amazing families and great friends! We recently spent Labor Day weekend with our "practically family" friends, the Howells. The kids always play "orphanage" when we're together . . . hmmmmm . . . wonder what that really means - and they made a movie of themselves.  We all look forward to the director's cut of that one.  The Howell's trampoline was also a huge hit and if we weren't eating or sleeping, there was a good chance the kids were jumping.  We enjoyed a trip Ellison Park where we canoed, kayaked, and played at the playground.  

Next up was the Seneca Zoo.  Lots of fun there as the animals were especially entertaining that afternoon.  I had tears running down my cheeks laughing at the baboons.  There was also a playground there with a huge "spider web" for the kids to climb on.  

Spiders!

Darin and Sarah playing that "try to push me over" game - who knows what it's really called?

Matthew and James

Sunday we enjoyed church and then went to Palmyra.  We took a short tour and then went to the Sacred Grove and Hill Cumorah.  I'm not sure how sacred the grove was feeling as the kids, in spite of our best efforts, went running down the paths and singing at the top of their lungs, but it was a good experience nevertheless.  

The Sacred Grove Shot (Oh, those silly boys):

Here are some contemplative pictures at the Hill Cumorah.  (You may notice Matthew's conspicuous absence from the contemplative photos . . . that is because he was rolling down the Hill Cumorah squealing and giggling rather than contemplating anything!  Ahh, me, what's a mom to do?)

Quiet Contemplation:

Darin and John got a couple of good workouts in over the weekend and even managed to squeeze in a game of tennis before we left Monday morning.  Heather and I enjoyed lots of good conversation and laughter together.  We are so grateful for them, and look forward to many more years of friendship to come!