Life is Bliss

Yep, life is pretty much bliss. ;)

I realized the other day that one blessing of this stage of life is that we get to spend a lot of time together as a family. Most of our evenings are spent together, all of us under one roof, with nothing to do but enjoy each other's company. Because, honestly...where do we feel like going with our little tribe? Nowhere that we don't have to go. And...what are we going to accomplish if we try to get anything done? Nothing. So, we sit at home, eat our meals, keep the house running...and spend our evenings together. And you know what? It keeps the pace slow, and it's kind of nice. Someday we will probably be much busier and eventually the times with everyone together under one roof will become fewer. So that is something I am appreciating right now. :) 

I recently met a good friend from high school who graduated last year after completing a five-year college degree and now has a job at an architect firm as she prepares to take her certification exams in the next year or two. She has been following this dream ever since we were very young and is almost there...yay! Then she asked what I've been up to. And I didn't know what to say. Umm...raising children? I really haven't been up to much else. But it is the most fulfilling job I could have!

Honestly...everything is going SO well. As in, much better than anticipated. Sometimes I feel like the more children I have to corral, the more natural it feels. I grew up the oldest of six, so that's basically what I spent the first nineteen years of my life doing. Well, minus the first few years of my life when I probably wasn't much help.

Since we are spending our time at home these days, it seemed like the perfect time to start potty training Micah! Ok, so I just woke up one day and decided to teach him how to use the potty. He was getting jealous because Levi was getting treats for using the potty, so I figured I might as well kill two birds with one stone and get them both trained at the same time! THE WORLD'S MOST BRILLIANT IDEA (besides a lot of other more brilliant ideas like the light bulb and wheels and stuff). Because they motivate each other. When number one sees number two go potty and get a treat, it makes him want to go! Peer pressure is the way to go, folks. Now I am almost ready to call Levi officially potty trained and Micah is doing great at home (though I spent the first two weeks scrubbing poo out of every corner of the house until one glorious day it suddenly clicked and he started putting it where it belonged). 

So. I guess potty training is as exciting as it gets around here. :) We don't get out much. Yet somehow I just rambled for a really long time.

It's picture time. The last couple weeks before Joanna arrived...

We enjoyed a visit from Suzanna, Shelby, and Camille! The boys LOVED having them over! 

We finally captured Micah in his classic "fix-it" position.

Coloring! :)

Matt needed me to make cookies for work so I gave Micah the beater when I was done. He sat there with this expression frozen on his face...for about two minutes straight.

The Sunday before Joanna was born...we were getting VERY impatient!

And then the big day arrived! Hopefully you've already seen enough pictures from that wonderful event! :)

Matt took the week off work after we brought Joanna home...and got lots done during naptime! These are all the weeds he pulled out of the landscaping! Yikes!

Corbin came over that Friday to help Matt out on a few projects...their projects didn't all go as planned, but they did enjoy some time on the water afterwards! 

The next weekend we spent with the Schulz family at Mom and Dad's. Joanna got to meet some of her cousins! Kyra needed some practice because her Mom is going to have a baby soon! 

Rocket balloons with Grandpa!

The second week Matt went back to work and we have had lots of help around here ever since! Up through last week, Camille and/or Shelby came on Mondays, my Mom helped on Tuesdays, and Hannah came on Wednesdays. Matt has been off every Friday but worked two of the Saturdays. So...that means I only had about five days to tackle on my own, and none were consecutive. Wow, I have an amazing support system. We are so blessed and thankful!

Enjoying day one with Camille and Shelby...uh oh, this girl business must be contagious! 

Levi and Daddy worked together in the shed one day and came in with this bench that Levi helped make! It was already cut into four pieces and he helped push the button on the drill to screw it together. :) 

Another day Micah put a bench together so now the boys have been playing "church" on their benches.

Levi's old glasses were rediscovered recently, so we popped out the lenses to give Micah a chance to model them! He looks so funny. :)

We spent two other evenings at the Massner house for summer birthdays. Johnny gave Micah some tree climbing lessons. I think he was pretty impressed! 

Then...back to the Schulz's to get together with the whole family when Steve and Julie came to visit! The night was filled with fun for the kids! This picture followed shaving cream twister! 

While the big kids swam in the pond, the little ones found the water balloons and had a blast popping them all! 

Krista was so thrilled to hold Joanna...I was quite impressed that she sat there holding her very gently for such a long time! My boys last about thirty seconds before eyes start getting poked (though they are improving!). 

Another family night...this time with the big Schulz family since Uncle Victor and Aunt Peggy were home! (Sorry for the blurry picture...) 

And of course...we can't forget our sweet baby! 

Levi loves her so much... <3

Oh, and Levi loves Joanna. You can tell he loves her because he is sharing his blankie with her. ;) 

And...yes! Can you believe it? Joanna was one month old last week! She is doing great - sleeping well at night, happy during the day, and...the smiles are coming and we love them!! :) 

I have been wanting to make a healthy pie and a good picking of blackberries gave me the opportunity! It turned out really good! And it even came out of the oven at pi time (3:14) so it was obviously meant to be. 

I had a little leftover dough so I baked a small pie crust and made it into a fresh strawberry pie for the three of us to share...yummy! 

Report on the rest of our fruit - we have gotten just enough of everything to eat fresh and I haven't had to put anything away yet...perfect! We got a half bushel of peaches and have picked a nice amount of blackberries and raspberries. I gave away the grapes because we still have a lot of juice left over from last year. The only thing I am still hoping to do this year is applesauce.

This week I had to make two trips to town for doctor appointments. On Tuesday everyone was along (with my mom) so we enjoyed a picnic at the park! Levi was getting really brave climbing around on everything! :) 

And so it goes...hope you all have had a good summer! We are looking forward to the arrival of fall - our favorite season! :)