College Football

Believe it or not, when the time came, I was actually the one who pushed for getting cable so that we can watch sports.  I have a lot of fond memories of watching sports with my family and I wanted to continue that with our family.  I love the way it brings our family and friends together.  This night, Liv got to sneak down after the other kids were asleep to watch the game with her dad... See. totally worth it!

Mrs. P

Liv has the cutest piano teacher.  I just love her.  She is proper and has high expectations, yet she giggles with Olivia and smiles through the whole lesson.  I can tell she loves my girl and that means so so much!

Veteran's Day

We really like to go to the veteran's day parade.  Something about seeing a street full of soldiers who have fought for our country brings tears to my eyes and patriotism into my heart.  I love our country. And I feel so grateful for the soldiers who have fought to uphold it for the good of others (including my family!)

Happy children live here

One day I was feeling especially grateful for everyday things.  That day I walked past our playroom and it struck me that all of the toys in mid play positions around the room symbolize the presence of happy children in our home.  I was filled with a warm joy.  Those same toys that I clean up over and over again are there because of the imagination of a child.  I love that.  As I walked by, I thought, "happy children live here."  It brings a new meaning to the mundane and recurring task of straightening the house. . . . I wish they would be here, just as they are, forever.

10 inches

Miss Gwen has been working on growing her hair to donate it for about 2 years.  She came up with the idea all by herself and knew she wanted to do it.  It finally came time to do it and she was able to bring her braid into her class to show all of her classmates.  She also brought in pictures of children who have lost their hair from cancer with and without their wigs.  Gwen was so thrilled to be able to make that donation.  She was happy about it for days.

Dog Guest

Brianna and Jon Came up for the weekend they brought Royce and he was our first ever dog guest!  We loved having them here.  We went on a hike to Peaks Kenney State Park and made donuts.  It is easy to see why the kids love Jon and Brianna.  They do a great job making time for them.

Gwen documenting our fun with the Sister Missionaries

These sister missionaries have become part of our family.  We love having them in our house and love the fun and the spirit they bring with them.  SO grateful for these great girls who have decided to dedicate this time of their lives to serve God.  We LOVE them :).

Treworgy Orchard

Fun filled excursion to Treworgy orchard with friends after a half day of school

A walk through our very own woods

I'm not exactly sure why we seem to only go on a walk through our woods about 3 times a year.  We tend to go through it once in the fall, winter and spring.  We love that it connects to the snow mobile trail so that we can actually make it all the way around the perimeter of our property.  Trees in Maine grow so darn close together that it can be hard to find your own path!  Here are pictures of our 2013 fall trip.  This happened the day before we hiked Bald Mountain.  Liv wasn't feeling well and it was great to get her some fresh air.  Brad convinced Beckham to come by promising him there would be mud to step in :).  Liv was a tiny bit embarrassed to be walking through our neighborhood in her PJs. In the end, she decided it wasn't a big deal and we all enjoyed searching for autumn leaves.