Splash Park and Family Bike Ride

Action shoot!

Fun at the splash park


Matthias on the move

Seriously cute girls

First family bike ride.

A couple of weeks ago we had a "quiet" weekend and so we tried to take advantage of this rare thing and focus on doing some things together as a family. We went out to the splash park, watched the sailboats at the beach, and took a bike ride. Tbe summer is really flying by and before we know it, it will be over!

Aunt LaLa, Marilyn and Kelsey come to visit!!

Laura and her girls came to visit for a weekend. We had a great time playing in the yard and swimming at the beach. Ava and Marilyn are only 5 months apart and recently have started a sweet friendship. They had a lot of fun playing together.

Silly Cheeseballs!

Kelsey and Laura at the beach

Happy Kelsey!!

Happy Matthias!

Gender Roles

At the very same time, Julia and Ava were having a tea party in their bedroom while...


Matthias was playing with a dump truck in the living room!


Stay tuned for the pictures of Ava and Julia playing with the truck and Matthias having tea, because I'm sure that will come as well!

New Life!

Welcome to the world Evangeline Kate!

Sunday night had the the honor of helping my friend Rachael and her husband Nick through her unmedicated delivery of their 3rd child "Ginny." It was an amazing, unforgettable experience and I am so proud of Rachael and blessed to have been apart of it.

Then on Tuesday night the caterpillar that we had been watching emerged from her chrysalis as a beautiful butterfly! Julia name her (can you guess?) "Evangelina, not just like baby Ginny but a little a like and a little different."

When she first opened the jar, the butterfly flew off and around the yard. She landed again and Julia and Ava sat down near her. Then she flew up and landed on Julia's nightgown. She couldn't have been more proud!

We moved her to our flowerbed and watched her drink from our impatients!

What an amazing week of new life. God's hand at work!

Ava, Julia, Matthias, Blake, Brayden ~ Troxel Grands

Mommy and her girls

Daddy and his "man-cub"

Swimming with Grandma and Grandpa Troxel

Just hanging around the hotel!

Julia and Brayden riding the dinosaur

We were so glad to get to spend some time with Donna, Larry, Suzanne, Heather and her boys while we were at the wedding in MN. This is the first time Grandma and Grandpa Troxel have seen all 5 of their grands together. We had a good time swimming and playing at a nearby playground.

A visit to Fort Dodge

On our way home from Minnesota, we took a slight detour to Fort Dodge, IA where Chris' grandparents live. We haven't seen them in nearly 6 years and they have never met Ava or Matthias. It was a quick visit but well worth the chance to see Grandma and Grandpa Behrens and to introduce them to their great-grandkids!

This summer I had the goal of actually keeping up with the front flower bed. The last few years have been full of pregnancy and young baby Ava so it just didn't happen. I was very blessed to have a friend plant it last summer when I was hugely pregnant with Matthias but this year I had no excuse.
Julia and I planted the petunias and impatiences together and the hanging baskets are from her school flower sale.
We also have been working on splitting the overgrown day lilies on the other side of the house. They aren't picture worthy this summer but hopefully by next year. I don't claim to have a green thumb but I am quite proud of how this has turned out. Just two years ago it was a barren wasteland with a couple of ugly bushes!

July 4th in Newark!

At the Newark 4th of July parade
He is very excited to celebrate!

All dolled up for the 4th!

Julia and Marilyn hanging on the end of the moving petting farm

This is the most bizarre thing: it is an inflatable "sinking" Titanic that kids climb up and slide down. There is an amusement park attraction made using a tragic event as the focal point, does anyone else think there is something wrong with that?

BTW... Julia had a great time sliding down the sinking Titanic!

We had such a great time celebrating July4th in Newark. I grew up with lots of fun 4th memories because it is my grandpa birthday and we used to do a big party and other fun things for his birthday. Now it is also Leah Grace's birthday, which means we have even more reason to love and celebrate this day. In addition of course to celebrating all of our freedoms and our nation's birthday!

Minnesota Wedding Pics

The Troxels and the Borgs!! Last time we saw Sarah and Mark, there were 4 less people there! We both lived in CA at the same time for about 2 years and since that time they've had Keziah and Gabriella and we've had Ava and Matthias. It was so great to get to see them again!!
Julia and Ava taking a break from all the dancing!

Ava helping feed Matthias his dinner at the reception.

A toast to the bride and groom!

Ava Troxel and Eva Borg (with Aunt Rebekah Behrens)

It was absolutely great to see all of Chris' MN cousins, many of which I had never met before but because of Facebook, I felt like I already knew them! I wonder whose wedding will bring us all together the next time?