all ones day

Halloween is one of the days I truly appreciate having two boys who love sports. while I adored the little red riding hood, ladybug, and cowgirl costumes I saw yesterday, I love having {most of} the supplies necessary for a scary-free costume!

this year connor disguised himself as a Detroit Lions' football player,

and Spencer was a loyal Ohio State fan.
together they were brothers loving their sports teams.

{can I tell you a secret? spencer behind that mask freaks me out!}

and a sign of our family times...one wanted to be photoed with friends before treating and one did not.

costumes or not, I hope your day was full of treats!

and happy 11.1.11!

it's all ones day! I think it's fun when the numbers on the calendar line up.

the parent becomes the student

today was a sad day. spencer turned in all of his football equipment.

last night the team finished the season with a win and a perfect 6-0 record! the past eleven weeks I’ve become a student to my wise thirteen year old son. I’ve learned so many things about myself, my son, and of course football. these are a few of my favorite photos of this awesome season with my most important lessons learned sprinkled in.

where you start doesn’t determine where you’ll finish.

spencer started the season on third string defense. he spent all of his early practices doing “drills” while he watched others practicing plays. he finished the season as the starting outside linebacker and second string wingback.

“you never get anywhere with fear in your way.”

I was fairly sure football was going to be out of Spencer’s comfort zone, but I didn’t realize how much until I read these words that he wrote inside a thank you note to one of his coaches. how true are his words? at times we’ve all let fear prevent us from traveling down an unexplored road.

there’s life on the sideline.

the myth is that all the action takes place out on the field. I now know there’s a lot to be learned and a lot to be shared when you’re watching from the sideline.

dedication...putting your entire self into it.

spencer never hid from responsibility. he was always willing to do what needed to be done to make the team better. from carrying equipment in from the practice field, to filling in at a new position, to practicing it one more time, he was dedicated to being the best football player he could be.

isn’t it funny how sometimes the parent becomes the student.

seven

friday he turned seven. celebrating and party preparations prohibited a timely post. but he so deserves one!

in seven words, he is:

focused

joyful

loving

loyal

genuine

tenderhearted

thoughtful

when I found out I was pregnant with child number two, the biggest question in my mind was "how can I love another, like I love spencer?" lucky for me, God's design for a mother's heart is for it to expand with more than enough love.

after spending a few moments with my second son, you'd probably come away with a similar list of adjectives to the ones I listed. yet we could bundle them all together and call him "mr. big." for when you get to know him, you'd see that he loves big, plays big, cares big, competes big...everything big.

this boy of mine is an early riser (seven am is late for him), and he is ready to go when his feet hit the floor. he loves waffles and honey nut cheerios. while his brother collected thomas the tank engine trains, he collects lego projects. he is patient to the nth degree when assembly is in session.

this boy of mine is an observer of people. as you watch him in a crowd, he is initially quiet and reserved, watching and analyzing his surroundings...he's always thinking. and then when the moment is right, he joins in.

this boy of mine is all about play. whether it's wii, psp, or wiffle ball in the backyard, this boy is a real live action figure. this action makes it easy for us to know when he isn't feeling well. if he's snuggling with you, there's a trip to the doctor right around the corner.

this boy of mine, isn't really. he's a precious child of God, entrusted to me for what will seem like a breath. he's a gift to everyone he meets. and every day I learn a little more how to possess a little less.

happy seventh birthday, boy of mine.

thirteen

it's really hard to believe he turned 13 today. his requests: chocolate cake with chocolate icing and chocolate jimmies (check), a morning at the track (check), an afternoon of nothing (check), and dinner at J. Alexander's (check, check).

handsome :: funny :: sensitive :: willing :: fun :: smart :: athletic :: loving :: loyal :: caring :: creative :: trustworthy :: independent...that's what he is.

Happy Birthday to my very favorite teenager!

meet martin

checking off my list.

spencer's sock monkey is complete! and I'm happy to share that he's already being well loved.

let me introduce martin the monkey:

Pattern: from Paton's Classic Wool, Monkey Business

Yarn: Paton's Classic Wool

Needles: size 5 dpn

the inspiration piece:

my childhood sock monkey, circa 1968. my grandmother made him for me. and as the story goes...my main past time as a child was to flush my sock monkey down the toilet, even still, he remains. and after I pulled him out of my hope chest last year, spencer made a special request- his own sock monkey. I was hesitant but encouraged by mark to knit it up for Christmas. I made the push, but just didn't finish. I think spencer would say he was worth the wait.

have a safe and happy halloween!

planes, parties, and pools

seems like just yesterday, but, in fact, it's been a week since we celebrated connor's birthday at Walt Disey World. mark was so generous to surprise connor and me with tickets for a mini birthday vacation. he was such a good little guy.

he found creative things to do as we waited for airplanes.

he celebrated #6 with all his favorite characters.

he swam his little suit off in gramma and grandpa's pool.

and he slept the entire flight home!

it was a birthday to remember!

go visit mark's blog to read his tribute to our son.

12

this is what 12 looks like!

Happy Birthday my son!
first initial p

up, up and away!

he made it! thanks for your well wishes and prayers. spencer is now enjoying the high life in florida with grandma and grandpa.

he received a huge blessing along the way... a first class upgrade!! "I went ahead and put you in first class," was all the special gate attendant said about his new seat assignment as she walked him down the tunnel. he ended up in row 2 instead of row 41! he enjoyed the space, the comfort and the meal.

this is just one stepping stone on the path to more freedom and more independence. In the coming months there will be many changes, challenges, and inevitable differences of opinion, but I look forward to the maturing spencer taking on many more adventures. I want to enjoy the changes in him and the changes in me.

summer bingo

sunday afternoon I was able to take some down time to read a few of my favorite blogs. I always enjoy the creativity of Stacy Julian over at playful. productive. present. and she didn't disappoint. she had a great post, tutorial, and pdf files for what she's calling her "kid plan" for summer-her summer bingo.

I immediately knew this would be a great idea for my boys {IF I could avoid perfectionism and get it put together in a timely manner.} after talking it over with mark and mentioning a 'vague' idea for a summer game to the boys, we were in.

I followed stacy's bingo rules, downloaded her bingo card, then made the necessary changes to the activities to apply to our boys and family habits. some of our activities this week include: play a board game with your brother, bless your brother in a secret way, play with sidewalk chalk, practice sight words with mom, and play psp or ds in your closet fort. {and I've already had a few requests from spencer for activities to be on next week's card.}

connor blessing the family by making pudding for our dessert tomorrow night- earning him a bingo square.


Stacy's bingo rules:
1. you get a new BINGO card each Sunday
2. you can use your FREE sticker on any square you want
3. you earn one ticket for every bingo (5 squares in a row)
4. tickets are redeemable for things like popsicles and extra Wii time
5. a BLACKOUT by Saturday night is rewarded with vacation spending money


I added two rules:
6. your morning routine must be completed before earning squares
7. a maximum of four squares can be earned each day. {with the one free square I gift them, they can complete their card during the monday-saturday time frame.}

I smiled as I went downstairs and read spencer's chalk board post. and I haven't heard "I'm bored" or "what can we do?" yet. so, after two days of activities, I'm deeming this a successful venture. if you're looking for a fun activity for your children this summer, hop on over to stacy's summer bingo post to start your own summer bingo!
and don't forget to yell BINGO!

monsters inc.

my boys amaze and inspire me each and every day. this post is specifically about the oldest of my two sons...spencer.

on thursday afternoon, he spent a long while in his room drawing and creating. this isn't unusual. both of my sons love to doodle, draw, and create. we have spiral notebooks full of their creations. so many that we sometimes don't have spirals for school. and it's becoming increasingly difficult for me to know when to keep or when to throw away their drawings.

when he came out of his "studio," he had created the monster series. he had drawn a collection of 10 monsters and the "key" for the creation of others.

the choices included body color, icons, eye style, mouth style, and horns.

I thought it was awesome until friday came...

friday, spencer came home from school focused on something. he immediately had a snack then had to have plain white paper. I sent him down to the printer for his stock. he then disappeared into his studio for what seemed like hours. when he emerged, he had a stack of newly created monsters. I was amazed. "spencer, we need to get you a binder to put all of these monsters in. this is amazing!" "just a minute," he said and disappeared into the studio. he came back with the sheet pictured below.

A MONSTER ORDER FORM from students in his class! he created all of these new monsters by request of his peers.

now, I have a creative side. but at his age I would have never thought about taking my creations to school, let alone sharing them with others! this simple act so inspired me!

step out.

take a chance.

share yourself.

be confident.

I will.

love you, spencer!!

**stay tuned for a webpage for you to request your own custom monster**

home again

spring break was wonderful! we were able to see family and friends all along our three legged tour. easter weekend was spent in ohio at my parents' farm, spring break week was spent with my best friend lisa and her family in maryland, and our final weekend the boys and I met up with mark to visit my cousins and tour washington d.c. too many great shots were taken; I'll just show you a few favorites and you can visit my flickr to see more. a big THANK YOU to all our hosts. we LOVE you all.

farmlife:

cer became my dad's horse feeding partner:

my best friend lisa and me:

and our lovely children:

corry, sor, cer, and carly at generous george's restaurant:

capitol city sites:

there was lots of crafting with lisa. that will come in another post. blessings until then.