pets R us

so adam and graham went on this incredible daddy-graham adventure (adam, being the awesome dad that he is, periodically takes marit on dates and graham on adventures) to a nearby creek with a net and a bucket and brought home a bunch of tadpoles to raise.
they lived in here for about a week

and then on a marit-daddy date, an aquarium was obtained (i have to admit that i was less than thrilled about slimy creek creatures in our house). adam insisted that it would be so much better for visibility to watch the tadpoles grow legs and he even built this impossible-to-tip-over stand for it. he transferred the tadpoles and left for work early one morning.

the kids came down when they woke up and were so excited to see these guys swimming around.
and then i noticed that the one with legs seemed stuck on the pump and that was the beginning of one death after another as they all went belly-up within a couple hours...talk about toddler trauma! marit kept saying "i want it to rise from the dead like Jesus!" between sobs.

yesterday, we got three 13 cent goldfish (talk about affordable pets!)...so we are introducing marit's orange one named "tabby-goldie" and graham's red-headed one named "rub-a-dub" or "rubber ducky"(i'm not sure which he is saying) and miles' orange-tailed one is still nameless.

we talk about getting a kitten from time to time as well. we aren't going to right now, but we decided pax might be getting insecure about it so he has been acting like a cat...trying to be a lap-animal. ridiculous.

more bald, blue-eyed, neighbor, baby cuteness

i hate that this one is blurry, but it was the only one miles was looking in...

this is another sweet baby neighbor ella. miles and ella are just a few weeks apart in age. LOVE it!

weekend for char

my sister has a lot of friends. they are kind, gracious people. i think her friends speak a lot about the kind of girl char is. she loves people well. she is thoughtful. she feels deeply for others. a few of her old college roomies organized her bachelorette weekend. i was so thankful to be able to go with miles to stay in the childhood home of one of char's bridesmaids and to participate in the festivities. it was so much fun to wander from room to room in this beautiful house only to find yet another sweet conversation happening between old and new friends. char's worlds collided in a sense with her local friends meeting her college friends, all excited about her upcoming wedding.

much of the group, though three girls had already headed home

so enjoyed this charming house. there were a lot of skinny jeans on this trip...

miles got lots of extra snuggles, here with charity and jessie

boggle-mania! char's friends are good with words (like herself).

we look more and more alike

fine dining. the food was spectacular! we shared the preparation responsibilities and these girls can cook!

lots of chatting and hanging in the kitchen

a little shopping. there was so much handmade pottery...dangerous for me, you know

miles' first sword, or rather a curtain rod

amy and meredith helping char address invitations

conversations with jane, carmen, deanna. i love the green walls (i pretty much loved every bit of decorating in this house...so warm and inviting and interesting).

heather and kelly

emily and meredith

gardening inspiration

heather, char, jessie

the back of the house is beautiful too!

we stopped to say hello to my grandma on the way home

cheap entertainment

our sweet neighbors are grading their yard for sod and they don't mind our little spies...

speaking of 7

this little one is now 7 months. SEVEN. he had a doctor's appt a couple weeks ago and he is weighing in at nearly 18 lbs! height and weight remain in the 50th percentile while his head circumference has joined the rest of our offspring in the 90th...

we are so thankful for smiley miley and his rapidly developing little self. he eats a variety of vegetables now and cereal and is learning to sit up now. he is also in a slightly frustrated stage as he sees things he would like to hold or, more likely, stuff in his mouth, but he lacks the mobility skills to get to them. usually frustration precedes the acquisition of a new skill, so i suppose he will soon find a better method of mobility than his current rolling across the floor method...that's when things will get even crazier and the re-baby-proofing will have to begin in earnest. but oh my, we are thankful!

7

may 15, 2004

7 years later


sunday adam and i celebrated 7 years of marriage. it just so happened that this weekend was my sister's bachelorette celebration out of town. anyone remember last year's anniversary when i was in nyc? adam was so kind to plan to celebrate our anniversary before i left and to joyfully send me off with my sister (and miles) for the weekend. i do not deserve this gracious, gentle husband of mine, but i am so thankful for him! God has been faithful to sustain our marriage through lots of changes, lots of school, three kiddos. His grace is truly abundant.

on thursday, adam took me to the most delicious restaurant i have ever been to in augusta. it was perfect for lingering...something about beautifully and carefully prepared food and a quiet unhurried setting makes for relaxed and lighthearted conversation. it was such a sweet date. look at what we ate:
adam's pork and gouda mac-n-cheese (hidden in those amazing onion rings)

first time i have had duck. yum!

molten chocolate cake anyone?


look at what we came home to! carol handled all three kiddos by herself...what a trooper. thanks so much!

miles meets the wests

it has been a long and busy week. adam had a vacation week and we were thankful to get lots of random things done, visit my grandparents, celebrate our anniversary, be together as a family. on tuesday we took a long day trip to see my mom's parents as they had not met miles yet (due to adam's schedule, hospitalizations etc). it was a fun day! i meant to get a four-generation photo and i kept forgetting, but here is marit laurelin being read to by ruth marita (her mother was marit blakely and i am ellen marit)

my grandpa singing songs to miles



we ventured down to west point lake while miles napped in the house and innocent throwing pebbles into the lake

turned into stepping and splashing in the water

to full-blown wading/swimming and yes, that is very much true georgia red clay

sister showers

char is getting married in july. last weekend i was able to go with her to a shower hosted by the ladies from the church we grew up in. traveling with kiddos is always exhausting, but i'm so glad we went. we stayed with my parents and it was good to see old friends.
marit and miles (graham, being the 2yr old boy that he is, stayed with papa) came with me and marit got the leftover ribbons

while miles got passed around

beautiful bride

beautiful house

beautiful ladies with a beautiful view. the best part of the shower was all the sweet (and humorous) advice these women gave char.

then this week we hosted a couples cookout/shower for them since jeremiah is in town this week. we are so thankful for tom and kelly and kevin and tara and krystal and dave and carol and all the neighbors who loaned us stuff to pull this thing off. it was fun!
that's the groom with the beard (they were so busy enjoying their friends that they did not get a picture together)

cousins table

the spread

char and one of her sweet roomies

at one point there were something like 20 kids in the back yard

man table

girl swing


my fellow hostess (tara and kevin have been doing premarital counseling with c and j and kevin will officate the wedding) being my twin...black tank top, jean shorts, and a baby

thank you dave for manning the grill!

my cousin deanna and jason



i am so thankful to be able to watch and participate in all these festivities as the wedding approaches. we celebrate what the Lord has done in the lives of these two including the bringing of them together to soon become a family of their own...such a joyous privilege!