Welcome Home Jake!

Jake started out the year in Squadron Officer School in Alabama. He was there all of January and the first week of February. We had him home again for just 2 short weeks before he left on deployment. He spent 2 month in Kuwait and 2 months in Turkey. He came home on July 1st and we were so happy to have him home!! The boys and I missed him so much while he was away.











We only had him home with us for 6 weeks before he had to leave again. He left a week ago to go to Instructor Pilot school in Oklahoma. The boys and I stayed here because the thought of all 5 of us living in a hotel room was a little overwhelming. He will hopefully be home from his school a month from today and stay home for a long time!!

Spring Break Visitors

My sister Jenni and her three kids came to visit the first week of April. Her kids were on spring break and they came to keep us company and of course take a trip to the beach. Our house was a little crazy with Me, Jenni and our 6 kids, but it was so much fun! My boys were so happy to have their cousins and Aunt Jenni here for a whole week!

We went to the beach twice and the kids had a blast. My mother-in-law rented a small condo on Isle of Palms for the week and we went and hung out with her on the beach and used her condo to get the kids cleaned up after all our fun in the sand. It was so nice of her to welcome our crew into her condo and it was great to see her! The water was still pretty cold, but that didn't slow our kids down at all. It was Asher and Sam's first trip to the beach. Asher spent his time cuddled up against me in a sling, but Sam got down and crawled all over the sand eating it up as he went. He was so cute! All of the kids had a lot of fun and we are hoping to get in a big family beach trip when Jake gets home in July!

We spent the rest of the week playing outside and just hanging around the house. It is so much fun to watch our kids grow up together. I am thankful we live close to family now and get the chance to spend so much time together. Jenni and I have such a close and special relationship and I am very thankful for all the love and support she gives me while Jake is away. I hope and pray that someday my boys will be as close to each other as I am to my sisters.


Asher swinging in the backyard.

Our 3 diapered babies.

Will and Emma being silly on the swing set.

Caden, Brennen and Emma giving each other a big hug at the beach!


Sam's first trip to the beach!

Asher's first trip to the beach!

Kids Bridge Run

This post is long overdue, but I can't miss the chance to record Caden's big race! Last year Jake and I ran the Bridge Run together and we took Caden to run the kid's Bridge Run. It takes place the Friday before the run and it is a big festival for kids all afternoon that ends with a bunch of different races for kids of all ages. Last year Caden ran a 100 yd dash with the toddlers and he loved it! This year, now that he is a big 3 year old, he thought he was ready for a longer race. He could have moved up to the 1/4 mile, but not my Caden. He insisted that he was ready for the mile race! I told him that if he could jog a mile with me in our neighborhood that I would enter him into the mile race. So we put the two little boys in the stroller and set out to jog two laps around our neighborhood. Caden was so determined and he ran the entire way with a huge smile on his face. So, I entered him into the mile race and he was so excited!

We got to the race around 3:00 after spending all morning at the Flowerton Festival in Summerville with our friends. He was already tired by the time we got there, but he was ready to race. We met our neighbor there and got the kids registered. He got his t-shirt and his race number and was ready to go. We spent the next few hours exploring the park and walking around doing all the activities for the kids. The toddler races started at 5:00 and Caden cheered his little heart out for his friends. He was so anxious for his long big boy race! The mile race finally started at 6:00 and Caden was exhausted, but he would not give up. He ran the whole race and he got his medal at the end! I was so proud of my little boy!


Caden with his friend Taylor getting ready for the race.

Sweet brothers taking a little rest while waiting to race.
Running with a smile!

Tired, but proud of his medal.

Finger Painting

Today was a rainy day here and a perfect day for an art activity! Jake's Grandma fell a few weeks ago and is in a rehab facility so Jake's Dad asked if the boys and I could make her something to cheer her up. We were excited to have a new project and to try and cheer her up. Caden and William worked together and finger painted a big piece of paper and then I wrote Get Well Soon on it. That was the easy part of our little project. Next I tried to get all 3 of the boys together holding the sign so we could take a picture for their great Grandma. Have you ever tried to get 3 little boys to sit in a chair together, hold a sign and all look at the camera at the same time?? It is no easy task and we didn't get a great picture...but we did the best we could. you may notice that all of the boys are wearing Georgia shirts, that was Caden's idea! We are going to send the finger painted sign and the picture of the boys to their great Grandma tomorrow. I sure hope it will bring a smile to her face!


Boys working hard on their project. Asher just supervised this time, but I don't think it will be long before he wants to join in.




We ended our day with dinner at our neighbors house. They have two little girls that are the same age as Will and Caden. All of the kids had fun and I really enjoyed a good meal and great company. I am so blessed to have wonderful friends that take such good care of my family while Jake is away. I feel truly blessed!

Give Parents A Break

The Air Force base has a program here called Give Parents A Break that gives you free childcare two Saturdays a month when your husband is deployed. I took all of the boys two weeks ago for the first time and Caden and William did great. They were there from 1-5. I only left Asher for about 1.5 hrs because he was not taking bottles yet and was sill really fussy. I worried about the boys the whole time I was gone, but when I picked them up they were both smiling and said they had so much fun!
So when it came time to take them yesterday I was feeling good about it and was ready to go out and enjoy my kid free afternoon. But William fell apart when we got there and they had to pull him off my leg so I could leave. He often has a hard time when I first leave, but he normally gets distracted by toys and cheers up pretty quick. I set off to go relax and get a pedicure, but called to check on him an hour later. They told me he was sitting at the table happily eating snacks with the other kids so I continued on with my plans for the afternoon. When I got back he was asleep in the corner. They told me he had cried the whole time I was gone except for when he was eating snack and that he had finally fallen asleep about 30 min ago. I was heartbroken! The poor little guy was so sad when I woke him up. If I had known he was having such a hard time I would have come and picked him up sooner. On a good note Asher did really well. He took a bottle and a short nap without much fussing! Caden of course had a wonderful time and loved playing with the other kids! He is such a social little guy!
So I don't know if the kids will all be going back when they have this program again in May...I will have to decide when the time comes. It was so nice to get out and get some things done without the kids, but I hate worrying about them. William was heartbroken, but he did recover quickly back his happy self once we got home. Maybe it will be easier next time...

Buddies

Over the last couple of months I have been watching Caden and William's relationship go through some big changes. They have been driving each other crazy since Will learned to crawl and steal Caden's toys, but he is now finally old enough to really play with his big brother. Caden has realized that William can be really fun to play with and they are starting to develop a special friendship that is growing stronger every day. It fills my heart with such joy to listen to them play together and to hear their laughter. I know that with 3 boys so close in age I am going to spend a lot of time acting as a referee and breaking up wrestling matches, but I pray that my boys will develop a special bond and love for each other that will last a lifetime.

Here are some pictures of the boys playing together.

My boys love their blankets! I often find them snuggling together in Caden's room.


I took this picture at the park last week. William tries his hardest to keep up with Caden and he will follow his big brother anywhere.


I left them playing in the backyard while I was making dinner and when I came out to get them I found them snuggled up on some beach towels in the middle of the yard. Caden told me that were exhausted from playing and just needed a little rest.


This is my favorite picture of the week. Caden decided that they were going to wear their rain boots all day Monday even though it was sunny and 80 degrees outside. They are sitting at their picnic table on the swing set painting the wood with their paintbrushes and a cup of water.

I Love Sundays!

Sunday is my favorite day of the week. It is a big job to get us all ready and to church on time, but I'm so glad we make the effort to go every Sunday. Caden and William go to Sunday school and Asher has just started going to the nursery. The hour I spend in church every week refills my spirit and gives me the energy and confidence to get through the week ahead. I am reminded that I am not alone and that with God I can do anything. I pray for my family and for strength and I always leave feeling refreshed and ready to take on my boys again!

This past Sunday I decided to take all of the boys to Home Depot with me to pick out new flowers and get some more mulch for the yard. I had Asher in an Ergo carrier, Will in the cart and Caden was walking. Everyone looked at me like I was crazy and we got quite a few comments, but my boys were awesome and we had a great time! We spent almost an hour walking around looking at all the plants, and of course the forklifts. We left with a very full and heavy cart and two very happy boys who were holding their own little shovels we bought so they could help plant the flowers.

We spent a couple hours working out in the yard together before we all took a long nap! Caden and William used their shovels to dig around in the mulch, but were not too much help actually planting the flowers. Asher sat in the stroller happy as can be and ended up falling asleep which gave me some time to play in the dirt with the other two. The yard looks great and Caden is so proud of the flowers he picked out. He has brought all the neighbors over to see them.

After a nice long nap our good friends Kevin and Trisha came over to visit. Kevin is awesome with the boys and they love him! He played with them in the backyard for an hour while I got to sit and Talk with Trisha in the screened in porch. It was wonderful!

The final thing that makes Sundays so great is that our friends, the Lundbergs, have us over for dinner every Sunday night. It is so nice to not be alone on Sunday nights. They are such great friends and take such good care of our family.


William working in the mulch.


Caden taking a break from gardening for a little bike ride.


My sweet boys playing together in the dirt.


Little Asher hanging out in the stroller watching his brothers.

Enjoying Life

Taking care of 3 little boys without the help of Jake has been challenging. I often find myself in survival mode, just trying to get us through the day. Sometimes I get so caught up in taking care of them and getting things done around the house that I forget to just enjoy my boys and this time in our life. I forget to take time to just play with them and laugh. Jake is so good at playing with them and I know they miss that so much. In church we are going through a series called The Art of Family. Last week the pastor said something that struck me. He talked about not just surviving raising your young kids, but striving to be a great mom filled with the love of God.

Today we had a really good day. I want to remember it and the way I feel tonight about each of our boys. I feel truly blessed and so thankful for each one of them.
It was the first time in months that Asher has been happy for an entire day! He is a very challenging baby and spends a lot of time crying, but today he smiled and cooed at me more than he ever has before. While the older two napped, Asher and I got to spend some quality time together. He was so happy and I was able to give him all my attention and soak in all of his sweet smiles.
William is my happy little man who always has a smile and a snuggle for me. My favorite time spent with him today happened just before bed. We sat in his monkey chair in his room and read together for about 15 minutes. He was pointing to the pictures in the book and telling me what everything was. It amazes me how quickly he is learning new words. He has just recently found a love for reading and I hope it is something that continues to grow.
Caden seems to be growing up so quickly. Every day after naps we take a walk around the neighborhood. It is a loop that is about 1/2 mile. The last couple of months, Caden has been riding his bike while I walk. He has really been practicing and is getting pretty good at riding it, so today Caden rode his bike really fast while I jogged and pushed the other two boys in the stroller. He went around the neighborhood 2 times without stopping. He had the biggest smile on his face and was so proud of himself. I was so proud of him! He wants to keep practicing so he can ride his bike with Jake when he gets home. Caden's love and enjoyment for life is something I hope he is able to hold onto forever.

So I'm ending the day filled with love and a sense of peace. There are dirty dishes in the sink and laundry to be done, but they can wait. Tonight I will go to bed happy and praising God for this day and my 3 amazing little boys.

3 Clean Boys!

For the first time last night I put all 3 of our boys in the tub together. Caden and William thought it was so much fun to have Asher join them! The three of them sat together in just a couple inches of water while I washed Asher. Caden and William had Asher smiling the whole time. I don't think he has ever had so much fun in the bath. It was cool to have Asher in the bath for a little while, but the fun wore off and they kicked him out so they could fill up the tub with more water and add some bubbles. I can't imagine what it will be like in a few months when Asher is sitting up well and wants to take a bath every night with his big brothers. There is sure to be lots of splashing and laughter!

Blogging for Jake!

It has been a long time since I have posted on our blog. Since my last post, we have moved back to the states and welcomed Asher into our family. I'm obviously not very good at keeping up with it. This time it is going to be different! Jake is deployed for the first time and I want to keep him up to date with everything that is going on in our crazy house. This is the best way to share our stories and pictures with him. In a house of 3 little boys there is always something going on and I don't want him to miss out on any of it!

We are moving!!

This week Jake received his new assignment to fly C-17's at Charleston AFB in South Carolina! This was Jake's first choice and we are all so excited to be moving back to the states and living closer to family and friends! We have just 2 months to get packed up and moved back to the states. Jake is busy trying to get things set up for us as quick as he can. We will be leaving Germany Oct 1st. Caden, William and I will be going to Georgia to stay with family for a few months while Jake goes to train in Altus, OK. We will all be in Charleston by the end of February!

William Michael is here!!

William was born on July 20 at 8:31am. He weighed 7lb 4oz and was 19.5in long. He is healthy, beautiful and such a joy to our family. I have had a quick recovery from my c-section and am feeling great. Caden is being a super big brother and we are so proud of him. He loves to show his brother all of his toys and to teach him about trucks, trains, airplanes, and tractors. I'm sure they will be the best of friends! He gets a little jealous sometimes and he really can't wait until I can pick him up again!




Jake holding him while waiting for me to get out of recovery.


Going Home!




Thanks Oma for the big brother and little brother shirts!

Kim and Dan were here for 10 days and they were a huge help!! We are so thankful they were able to come out and help us welcome William to the family and take care of Caden. Caden really loves his Oma and his Opa and he had a wonderful time playing with them. Jake started 10 days of paternity leave when his mom left and we are all enjoying having him around the house to help out. My mom gets here on August 4th and we can't wait to have her here!

Thank you for all the thoughts and prayers for our family. We are doing so well and we thank God for blessing us with William.

Caden's first day of summer camp!

Caden is turning into such a big boy! Today he started his first day of summer camp at the Childrens Learning Academy. It is a school off base, but is all Americans. He will be going 5 days a week from 9-12 for the next 7 weeks assuming he continues to enjoy it. He was so excited to go this morning. The first thing he said to me this morning was "today I go to school!" and then all morning he ran around saying "hooray school!" I'm pretty sure that I was more nervous about him going to school than he was. When we got to his classroom he hung up his backpack and ran inside the room to see the toys. He gave me a kiss, told me he loved me and then ran off to go play with another boy and some tractors. I was so proud of him for being so brave! When I went to pick him up he was playing with trucks, but as soon as he saw me he came running and jumped into my arms. His teacher said that he did well, but was having a little trouble listening. Hopefully that will improve as he gets used to being there.

Getting ready to go to his first day of summer camp!


Running to give Dixie a goodbye kiss before we leave.


I am now 37.5 weeks pregnant and still feeling pretty good! It has been hot here and I'm looking forward to the cooler weather we are expecting this week. I have really been missing air conditioning the last couple weeks. Caden and I are still keeping busy walking Dixie every day and playing at the park. He talks a lot about his baby brother now, but I'm still not sure he quite understands what is about to happen. We are all getting excited about William's arrival and I can't wait to have him in my arms!

37 weeks, feeling huge!


Caden and his best friend Dixie snuggling on the couch before church on Sunday.

It's been a busy month!

We started out the month of June with a trip home to the states! It was a very long 10 hour flight with Caden and we don't plan on doing it again until we move back. We started our visit up at the lake with the Fox family. Kim and Dan had a birthday party for me and we were able to spend a wonderful day at the lake with both sides of our families. It was so much fun.

After a few days of relaxing at the lake we got on another plane with the Fox family and flew to Virginia for some time at Jake's grandparent's beach house and for a friend's wedding. We spent our first few days in Virginia on the beach and spending time with family. Caden had a great time on the beach playing with Jake and I and his aunt April and Oma. We are so glad we were able to go up to the beach and spend some time with Caden's great grandma and grandpa and also meet his great uncle Rick! We all really enjoyed our time there.

In addition to our fun at the beach with the family, we were also able to go to Ryan and Sam's (college friends) wedding in Suffolk, Virginia. We took Caden to the rehearsal dinner on Friday night so that he could meet our friends we had not seen since we moved to Germany. He was great and even fell asleep in his stroller during dinner. He is such a good little traveller. On Saturday, Caden's aunt April and uncle Eric were kind enough to watch Caden for us all day so that we could go to the wedding and enjoy time with old friends. The wedding was beautiful and we had a great time catching up with old friends. It was especially fun to spend time with Mike and Kelli and have another pregnant girl to hang out with!

On Sunday we flew back to Atlanta and spent the next week with the Gutting family in Marietta. We spent most of the week playing with Caden's cousins Brennen and Emma. He loved playing with them and still asks me every day if we can go and play with them at aunt Jenni's house. I wish we lived closer and could see them more often. We also made sure to eat at all of our favorite restaurants and do a little shopping! We tried to have a birthday party for Caden the day before we left to come back to Germany, but Caden was so exhausted and worn out from his two weeks of excitement that he fell asleep on his grandpa's lap about 20 minutes after all of the party guests arrived and slept through the whole party. Even though Caden missed his party Jake and I enjoyed spending time with both of our families and our good friend Melissa.

We had a wonderful time at home and treasure the time we were able to spend with our families and friends. We hope we will live closer in a few months and will be able to visit more often!

Yesterday we celebrated Caden's 2nd birthday and Father's Day! I feel so blessed to have my wonderful boys. Jake is an amazing father and Caden adores him. I love watching and listening to them play; there is nothing better than the sound of them laughing and playing together!

Now we are busy preparing for William's arrival next month! We will keep you posted this coming month and I promise to post more pictures soon!

Trip to the Netherlands

This week we took an Air Force paid family trip to the Netherlands. Jake needed to go to the altitude chamber to do a refresher course and the closest one here is about an hour south of Amsterdam, so Caden and I came along and we made a short vacation out of it. We drove up Tuesday and stopped at a huge beer store in Belgium which made Jake very happy! Tuesday night we went out to dinner with the Travis and Lindsay Reuff, another couple from Jake's squadron. We ate at a delicious restaurant and we all ordered food from the house specialty menu. None of us could read the menu so we didn't really know what to expect, but the food was amazing! Jake ordered a shish kabob and it was served hanging on a big pole on the table.


Jake eating his shish kabob

Wednesday morning Jake had to go to training so Caden and I went to explore the town of Amersfoort with Lindsay and her daughter Sophie. It was a really cute town with canals running through it. We found a park for the kids to play at and then went to a great coffee shop that had a huge playroom for Caden and Sophie. It was a really fun morning. Jake and Travis finished with training around lunch time and we all piled into our car and drove up to Amsterdam. We went and toured the Anne Frank House and explored the city. We of course found a park for Caden to play at since he likes to try them out in every European city! Amsterdam was a beautiful city and we are glad we were able to make it there before we leave.


Caden trying to steal a kiss from Sophie at the park.


Caden at the park in Amersfoort





Caden playing at a park in Amsterdam

Baby William Update

Today I had another ultrasound to check on William's kidneys and we got good news! He does have a slight case of hydronephrosis (fluid on the kidneys) but the doctor thinks it is nothing to worry about. He is going to do one more ultrasound in 5 weeks to check again, but he assured us that everything is going to be fine. At 30 weeks William is weighing in at 3lbs which is right on schedule. Unfortunately he would not take his hand away from his face so we didn't get any good pictures of him today. We did get a couple of glimpses of his profile and the doctors said he thinks he is going to have Jake's nose. Hopefully at the next ultrasound he will move his hand so we can get a better look at him. Jake and I are both feeling very relieved and thankful after today's appointment. We can't wait to meet our new little guy!

18 weeks

18 weeks



25 weeks


I couldn't put up a post without some pictures of our sweet Caden so here are a few pictures of Caden enjoying his bath this week.

Happy Mother's Day!

I had a wonderful Mother's day hanging out with my boys! I started my day working in the church nursery with all the sweet babies. Then Jake and I attended a great worship service while Caden went to Sunday school. Caden loves going to school and was so excited to go and see his friends!
We spent the afternoon playing outside and are thankful the rain didn't start until after dinner. Caden has so much energy and loves spending the day outside playing with mommy, daddy and Dixie! We went on a long walk, fed ducks, rode bikes, jumped on the trampoline and played with the neighbors. He is one tired little boy and is sound asleep! For dinner, Jake cooked me a wonderful pesto pasta meal we ate while in Italy. It was delicious! It was a great day and I am so thankful for my amazing husband and sweet boy who made my day so special!

We also wanted to wish our moms a happy Mother's day! We love you and miss you so much! Thanks for everything you do for us. We can't wait to see you in 3 weeks!

A lot of you have been asking for new belly shots so I had Jake take a couple this afternoon. I am 29 weeks now and feeling pretty good! We are getting very excited about William's arrival!













Caden playing with his best friend Dixie!