More Great Pictures!

Andrew vs. the Rock Wall; getting comfortable in the pool

After an afternoon of swimming, this diaper has had all it can take! Andrew thought it was pretty funny, and kept hitting at it as it dragged between his legs.

More swim lessons - Amanda has gotten much braver, in just 4 weeks she is comfortable going under water (on her own terms), holding her breath, and floating - BY HERSELF - with a swim noodle. Tasha has been very patient yet persistent, and Amanda may actually be swimming by the end of the summer. THANK YOU, Tasha!

Most of the time I like to have pictures to go along with our stories, but this one is too precious to leave out. Last night Amanda and I were reading from her Children's Bible about Abraham, and how God called him to leave his home and move to a new place. I commented that that was like how God asked us to move to Oregon. Little did I know what would happen next... Amanda started to cry and say how much she missed her old friends from Washington! She has done amazing this past year with the transition, new school, and making great new friends, but you and your families have a very special place in her heart and she thinks about you often. The wonderful thing about Amanda is that when I asked her who she missed the most - she said she missed everyone!

That sentiment is shared by Mark and I ... we really have enjoyed our new home, new job, making new friends, and getting involved in new activities. But those precious years in Washington as we established our marriage and started our family will remain close to our hearts and fresh in our memories. While wish we could see you all more and talk to you more often - keep updated in each other's lives and share life together - we also understand that God has brought us to this new place. So we do our best to move on, making new memories as we go... but know that you are not forgotten, and we look forward to our visit in August!! Until then, thank you for sharing life with us through our blog.

Backyardigans!

In an effort to be a "fun" aunt, and try to help Forrest overcome the separation anxiety that happens when Megan brings him over, we pulled out the swimming pool and went crazy!

Amanda and Andrew enjoy the blow up pool with cousins Emma & Forrest

Since the water had been warming up since, well, yesterday afternoon, the kids all jumped right in! Andrew was a little hesitant at first, but quickly overcame his fear and splashed around with the other kids. Forrest pretty much stayed in the whole time, and even cried when Mommy came (now THAT'S a first!)

Forrest kicks back and relaxes; Andrew tentatively splashes

The girls discovered that if they get wet in the pool then immediately go down the slide, they can go really fast! This went on for a few minutes, until Amanda went a little too fast and got a little hurt. Oh well, it was fun while it lasted.

Amanda flies down the slide wet; Amanda and Emma cool down in the grass after a hard afternoon of swimming!

Weekend Fun!

Last weekend, Lisa went out of town for a wedding and left Aaron with the kids. What a great husband to take 2 days of vacation not only so his wife could get a break, but so he could spend time with his little ones! Anyway, hair is always a bit of an issue for someone who isn't used to doing it, and Lauren's presents it's own challenges. After swim lessons and some play time outside, I offered to do Lauren's hair (Aaron made sure Lauren told me Thank you!). Since Amanda had french braids, Lauren also wanted some. Being used to Amanda's thick, straight mane of hair, braiding Lauren's felt like I was going to tear it right out! I thought it was so funny how different they were that I had Aaron take a picture. You can't tell as much in the picture, but it's amazing how different those girls are!

We ended up spending a lot of the time Lisa was gone together - one night at Putters, the next night dinner at our house, swimming at Grandpa Walter's pool on Saturday (this time Andrew went in, too!), and more play time Sunday afternoon. Aaron is a great guy, but I did miss Lisa - maybe almost as much as her family did!!

More fun with the Shipps!

The Shipp's decided they hadn't had enough of us, so stopped by for another fun night on their way home from Sun River. This time I DID have the camera; I probably looked like a crazy tourist with all the pictures I took!

The Shipp's with us at Putters!

The Boys - Andrew & Jason on the slide
Trying to get a good picture of Connor & Jason

Greg & Jason try out the "fast" slide

Connor tries conquering the rock wall while the girls look on

The older kids will actually pose and STAY STILL while you take their picture!

Fun at the Park!

Playing, digging, and getting dirty in the soft sand!
Jason the cowboy!

Look at that... we actually got all 5 kids to sit still for a picture!
Thanks for visiting... we hope you come back again soon.

Look What I Can Do!

Amanda is shedding her cautious nature and trying new things every day!

We have removed the baby swing from our play structure and put in a hanging bar (Amanda calls it the hand swing!). She can get her legs up on it and hang upside down... without her hands sometimes, but apparently not for pictures!

Ready..... Set..... Hang!

We have recently discovered a pizza place closeby called Putters. There is an indoor putt-putt course, a game room/arcade, pool tables, lazer tag, and an awesome enclosed indoor playground. Amanda has conquered the rock wall, and is quite proud of herself! I wish we would have discovered this place months ago...

She also got quite BRAVE at Grandpa's pool yesterday (at the rec center in the mobile home park he lives in). Unfortunately I left the camera in the car, so I couldn't document her bobs, holding her breath under the water, swimming with the support of only a swim noodle, and jumping (or should I say FLYING) into the pool! When she realized she could touch almost the whole way across the pool - it only gets to 4 feet deep - her confidence skyrocketted. We'll have to see if that translates into swimming lessons tomorrow!

These are a few of our Favorite Things!

Reading with Daddy!

Daddy taught Amanda to read this Spring;

Andrew won't be too far behind.

Kids Klub!

At our local gym, the kids get to hang out with their friends, create projects, and just have fun! Pictured here with neighbor Lauren; Colin was too busy clinging to mommy to smile for a picture. BONUS: Mommy & Lisa get to exercise and get ready in peace!

Our Neighbors!

I know, you've heard so much about them we could practically share a blog. In the rare times we're not together, the kids enjoy standing in their respective play structures yelling across the fence to each other. Amanda and Lauren have even learned to "play together" during the boys' naptime, while in their own yards!

Swinging!

We love our play structure. Amanda has gotten very good at pumping, and goes so high sometimes that she scares us. Andrew can't sit on the swing yet, but here Daddy helps him join the fun!

Grandpa's House!

Andrew sharing cake with Grandpa; Amanda teaching Miss Pennie to color inside the lines. We hear some interesting things from their times at Grandpa's. Our favorite is Andrew, standing with the pantry door open, pointing and the marshmellows and asking, "Can I have some in a bowl?" Then Grandpa turning red and says he doesn't know where Andrew got that idea! In Grandpa's defense, Andrew also eats brocolli and cauliflower there, which he does not do at home.

Thanks for spending some time learning about our favorite things!

Happy Birthday, Mom/Grandma!

Today is my mom's birthday, so we recorded a special video message just for her. We love you! (PS - The cards are in the mail.)

Friends from WA!

This weekend we had the priviledge of hosting some good friends from our old home in Washington state, the Shipp family. They stayed for a night on their way to Sun River (which is, by the way, just a couple of hours from our place!). It was a great opportunity to catch up on each other's lives, and the kids had a great time playing together.

Andrew had a great time playing with their boys, and was very impressed that they wore "undies" and went pee-pee in the potty... I'll be sure to capitalize on that soon! Amanda and their daughter played so well - none of that bossy-ness or competition that I've come to recognize in her. They tried having a little sleepover in Amanda's room, but it was too hard to settle down, so we had to separate them.

Monday morning we went to the park to get out some energy, even though it was a tad bit cold and windy. The kids loved that our local park (just about a mile from our house) has a whole sand play area, great slides, swings, and more. Unfortunately we had forgotten our cameras, so you'll have to just trust me that it was a fun time!

Some of you know the Shipp's history and what they've been through over the past few years. I am still amazed and awed at God's healing touch in their lives, regarding both Greg's health and the emotional and spiritual health of their family. I know many of you will agree with me that it is so nice to have Greg BACK! What a miracle.

I'll close this by reminding you that we would love to have visitors anytime! We are well-settled in our house, have room for guests, and even know some local things to go do. The weather will be warming up any time, so come on down and check out our new home town!

A picture of our neighborhood park

About Andrew!

I realized that with all the activities Amanda has been involved in recently, you haven't heard much about our little man!

Andrew is a 2 1/2-year-old wild man who often gets into trouble with our neighbor's son, Colin, who is 2. They're hilarious together - we call them "double trouble."

He generally likes the water - but for some reason he seems hesitant to go in our blow up pool. The other kids love it and were pouring water over their own heads one particularly hot day. Little did Lauren know that Andrew DID NOT want to get wet... so she decided to give him a little treat! Uh oh!!

He loves animals and had fun when we went to feed the ducks/birds/geese at a local park - but this time I think he forgot that the bread was supposed to be for the BIRDS!

He also loves to sing and play the piano - or any other musical instrument, for that matter!

Anyway, we love our little boy and couldn't imagine how quiet our house would be without him around... although bedtime really IS like a mini-vacation some days!

Swimming Lessons!

Amanda started swimming lessons this week... oh and what an adventure it has already been! Some of you may be familiar with my daughter's hesitance with water (does "No Yadi" sound familiar??!!), but she has gotten better over the past couple of years as she gets older and has more positive experiences.

However... with the lesson starting with a required "bob" and a game of "who can hold their face in the water the longest," the tears were on! She has a great teacher who is also a mommy, so she's not letting Amanda give in to the fear.

Amanda's "partner in crime" is our neighbor's daughter, Lauren, who thankfully has more confidence and ease in the water. Hopefully some of that will rub off!

PS - Thanks to Lauren's mommy for taking the pictures!!

Preschool Graduation!

We have attended our first official graduation here in the M. Walter Family. Amanda graduated from preschool on May 29th after a fun-filled year and lots of learning. This was her second year in preschool, but started over in a brand new school with brand new teachers and wonderful new friends after our move here last summer. Daddy even taught her to read this spring, so she is more than ready to head off to Kindergarten in the fall.

I pledge allegiance... a valuable lesson in patriotism!

Amanda receives her diploma...Kindergarten, here we come!