One more shout out...

to my father-in-law, brother-in-law and husband!  We finally purchased a storage building to help with our crowding issues.  See, this old house came with zero storage.  So we have had to make due with an attic and the garage.  Oh the garage.  It is a nightmare.


So the same brave men who tackled the wall also did the back-breaking work of pulling up a fence to allow the movers to bring the building into our backyard.

The day we moved the building was the one day out of the entire month that it rained.  Those poor guys got soaked!

The hard work is done.  Time to drop the building.

Careful!

Whew!

And he's stuck.  The guy was a bit of a crazy driver.  He nearly ran over the guys a few times.  Here he is spinning his wheels in our backyard.

Levi strapped on a hat and ran out to see the action.

"Looks alright to me mom!"

And here she sits.  We have to let it settle before we put a ton of weight in it.  But we are so happy to have a place for our junk! 

Of course Matt has plans for shelves and storage on the walls so we still have some work to do.  But it's a start!

Deconstructing a garden

It is a bitter-sweet time of year.  Time to start pulling up the plants that I have nurtured all summer.  Some are in the midst of massive prodution.  They can stick around.  Others, like our corn, have already given what they had to give.  We are always thankful as we wrap up the season.  We again reflect on the majesty of it all.  Nourishment from a seed and some dirt.  It's still amazing after these many seasons.  The Father still provides.  We will continue to pull and sort until the last frost.  I hope your season has been sweet. 

Oh the bounty!!  Vibrant color from the ground.

So sweet with no chemicals added!

My fridge has been stuffed.

But this is beautiful too!

This was just one color of indian corn that came from our stalks.  My personal favorite.

It was like Christmas to open each husk.  So many colors!

Of course we save seed for next year.

This kid stuck with me all afternoon.  He shucked corn like a pro.

This one just kept trying to eat it.  But come on, you always need a comedian.

We found some okra that was long gone.  So, to seed it will go!

As a bonus, we found some watermelon hiding in the corn.  Thanks summer!

He's okay.

Levi was so excited to see his sister and brothers.  He kept putting his hands to his face and yelling, "Asher!"

Asher found us first.  He ran up and hugged his daddy.  He didn't want his picture taken though.

Jolie ran up and immediately began talking about Broadway Kids.  It's a special music team that the 4th graders can be a part of.  That was the best part of her day.

Here he is!  I worried about him all day long and then found out that he did great.  His teacher said that he was an example to the rest of the class!  Praise God!  He had a great day.  He even told me, "When we practiced walking down the hall, my teacher didn't have to call my name once!"  He did say a little girl kept punching him but that he "blocked her off."  He didn't even tattle.  He just took care of it himself.  That's my boy!  He even looks bigger.

So happy to see that smile!

First day photos.

Here they are grandparents, aunt and uncles!!!  Mama is doing fine.  Kind of. 

My 4th grader.

My 2nd grader.

My Kindergartner.

The new shoes.  Always the most exciting part of back-to-school.

Does anyone else see the hesitation on Zaddok's face?

The brothers.

He tried so hard to be happy.

Oh my baby.  This is what I was dreading.

We had to leave him in his classroom, crying his eyes out.  Then Mama had to leave so I could cry my eyes out.  I just wanted him to feel happy and excited.  Instead he feels unsure and scared.  God, please be with him today.

I just want it to be 3:00.

My sad/happy day.

I am in shock.  Summer is over.  While my garden is still in production, my babies aren't going to be here to help me harvest.  They will be part of a classroom.  Just another kid.  Even though their teachers will love them, they won't know how truly wonderful and special they are. 

They won't know just how precious and tender Jolie's heart is towards others.  They won't see the sweetness in Asher's somber and serious way.  Their hearts won't fill with joy at the twinkle in Zaddok's eyes.  I mourn this loss.  I will miss my babies. 

 But the excitement they feel makes up for my hesitation.  They are so ready to be part of that classroom.  They can't wait to be one of the kids.  And they are so excited to show the teachers every reason why they should love them! 

This is the hardest part of parenting.  Letting them be who they are apart from us.  We know that everything we have taught and prayed covers them.  We pray that their hearts are guarded and that their spirits are protected.  We hope that they have a really wonderful experience. 

"May the Lord bless you and keep you.  May He make His face shine upon you and be gracious unto you.  May the Lord give you Peace."

Matt took this on his way home from work. *sigh*

Have a sweet day my babies. Mama's gonna cry a little. Then I'm gonna go get a coffee with only one child by my side.

At least he is stinkin' cute. 

This is the corn we grew this year!  Isn't is cute?  Thanks Papa!

We have been blessed with a good production of cucumbers.

Our girls have been busy!  I saved them to make some breakfast casseroles for the freezer.  Great easy school morning breakfasts.

Thanks for sharing this day with me.

El Reunion

July is reunion time for my husband's family.  Everyone loads up all of their camping gear, every bit of food they own, and some sweet talent show skills and heads to the New Mexico high desert.   It is always a fun time spent with our sweet family.  The kids LOVE it!  They just roll around in the dirt and eat cookies whenever they want.  It's a kid's paradise.  The grown ups; my husbands cousins, aunt and uncles, grandparents and some old friends just enjoy being together.  Of course there are pictures!   

Usually, my Jolie is over-run by boys.  Not true with these cousins!  Girls were everywhere and Jolie was content.

Did I mention these were her kind of girls?

These are some of our boys.  They were like wild animals.  They were hard to spot.  When we did, it was even harder to get a picture!

With the exception of occasionally messing up a girl picture.

  People get my husband and his brother confused. This is not my husband.  This is my bro-in-law with my niece Emma. 

This is the heart of the reunion and the family!  We love you Popper and Grandmother!

If Grandmother and Popper are the heart of the reunion, then this is the stomach.  Not sure which is bigger! ( Okay, so the heart must be bigger because the stomach couldn't handle all of that food.  Can you say leftovers?)

This is the Mullins/Stokes compound.  We had a nice cozy spot beneath the trees. 

And my fear of snakes slithering around the campgrounds came true.  Thankfully my husband/hero caught it and thankfully it was just a bull snake.  The kids were so excited!

iPhones on a camping trip?! Hey, can you check my Facebook?

We finally got to meet Ms. Teddie.  (Teddie's mama Rachel is not only family but is also a blogger friend. Cozy Green Cocoon)  Now they have gone East.  We won't get to see them again for awhile so we were all thankful for the chance to hug them!

This was the only time I saw my son all weekend.  He turned Survivor Man on us.  We got him back when it was time to leave but he had a thick coating of dirt all over him and wouldn't let go of the weapon he had fashioned from a stick.

You know how everyone has a crazy uncle?  Well, this is ours and he is glorious!  We all love Uncle Brad.

You know that dirt coating I was talking about?  Here it is in action.  Nice uni brow son.

Matt and his cousin AJ.

He's the handsomest.  Sweet Popper.

We got to celebrate Grandmother's 80th birthday.  It was so special to have everyone together to honor her.  It was a surprise party that really surprised her because her birthday is not until November!

The most beautiful girl in the world!

These littles played into exhaustion everyday.

We have a traditional talent show at every reunion.  The kids put on a great show.  This year, Popper participated with his Magic Hat trick.  Everyone was gathered in anticipation.

It was a great trick!  See the awe, confusion and excitement in their eyes.  Priceless!

My little wolf cubs emerging from the cave.  They slept like rocks and woke bright and early.

It was a gorgeous weekend.  God was merciful and gave us cool weather and beautiful sunsets.  We couldn't have planned it better.  We feel blessed to be a part of a family that has so much love to give.  Everyone had a blast bonding with cousins that live far away or getting to know each other better.  I pray that these moments will be included in some of my kids favorite memories.  I know that they are in mine.