Illinois sunset

 

A day at the St.Louis Arch

Sunday since my brother-in-law and sister have never been up in the arch , we decided to head downtown for the day. It was an overcast day so we were not sure if we would be able to see much. Once we boarded the little capsules and headed to the top , the view was great .

What better way to show our excitement to being together and enjoying all the fun that the day has to offer..... but to do some jumping pictures......

Amanda and baby Swift were so excited about being at the arch they couldn't help but to participate in the jumping also..





After the arch Owen and I had to drive Amanda and Donny back to the airport. I have officially marked this weekend as one of the best road trips Owen and I have taken. There were so many funny moments and memories made. New Experiences.. such as the groovy time we had at the Blues and Jazz Club Sat. night. the beautiful wedding we attended and crazy animals we encountered(or Donny encountered) Though it was overcast and a little rainy at the Arch it ended up being a great day , full of laughs and fun memories... this was a great weekend to remember !

Friends

This last weekend Owen and I flew to St.Louis for the weekend for my cousin's wedding. We had an awesome time. On Thursday we rented a car and drove the 3 hours to go visit one of my bestest friends in Peoria IL. We got there around 9:00p and had to leave around 11:00a the next morning but I would have drove that trip a hundred times to see her. Everything just seems right in the world when we're together. It's like we were never apart...she understands my quirkiness, my crazy organizational skills( or nonexistent), my spontaneous life decisions, last minute adventures , and also shares a love of art and books...what more could you ask for in a friend :)...Her husband is the new youth pastor at a church in Peoria . So while the boys left to go hang out on the rooftop of the youth building and talk boy talk , us girls hung out at home and chatted girl talk...

Here are some pictures of the boys. Jagger was livin it up for the camera..
Here are the twins Slade and Cash... They too were lovin the camera . I didn't have any problem when I asked them to smile for the camera .. well at least look at the camera.
So after a very quick but amazing visit we headed back to Missouri to visit with our family.

The Great Geauga Fair

"What a night! Never have I seen such leavings! Everything well ripened, seasoned with the passage of time and the heat of the day. Oh, it was rich, my friends. Rich! "..... Templeton from Charlotte's Web...

Cotton Candy, Fried cheese on a stick, lemonade, fries, Carmel apples...... ohhh the joys of the fair. I wait all year for this day. The kids were so excited to see all the rides and animals.

Torin actually thought he was driving this car , he was ecstatic. Since Kaden and Sage never give him a chance to drive our toy jeep at home , you would think he just got a million bucks.




Notice the the little hand at the bottom of the picture. This is Kaden measuring the horses eyes. He was so fascinated in how big the horses eyes were . He was walking around with his hand trying to show me how big each were. I just so happened to catch one of his measurements in this photo.


Owen and his love for cotton candy .. never really understood that love. I could open a can of pure cane sugar and get the same effect.




And here is the picture and 1st place ribbon I received at the fair this year. I entered 4 photos and the Black and white profile of Sage one first place in that category. After seeing the 1000 other photos that were turned in , I was actually surprised that I even received a ribbon . The quality of the photos turned in were so great . I was amazed at all the talent there.

After all the amazing greasy food, rides, animals, truck shows , we were faired out and ready to head home.

Wilbur: You ought to be ashamed of yourself, Templeton. It would serve you right if you had an acute attack of indigestion.
[Templeton hiccups agains and pats his stomach]
Templeton: My stomach can handle anything
Wilbur: Templeton, if you weren't so dopey, you'd notice that Charlotte has made an egg sac.
[Templeton gazes toward the ceiling and sees Charlotte's egg sac]
Templeton: [hiccups] Hooray for Charlotte.
Wilbur: She's going to become a mother. For your information, there are 514 eggs in that peachy, little sac.
Templeton: This has been a night.

the end of summer

About a week ago we were able to get together with some of our friends for a BBQ and a little swimming before the weather gets to cold. It was a great time to visit and watch the kids enjoy one last time in the water. Since the Ohio weather is turning quickly to fall.

Sage and Torin thought it was so funny to race each other across the pool.



Here are our friends Preston (above)and Parker swimming in some very cold water.

This is another friend who's name is also Kaden . I don't know how this happened but the sun just came through the clouds at the right time. I thought it was a pretty cool timing.
Here is Sage contiplating her next move... I am sure she has her next wet sponge target in mind .. don't let her cute innocent smile fool you...
Jacob was so great with the kids. He played and entertained Torin in the tree house then later finding frogs and building a frog home with the kids. They loved it.
What kind of day would it have been with out a with a classic game of kickball? This was the first time my kids have played.



Torin with the first kick and a nice run to first base... He was so excited that he kicked the ball and made it to base that he couldn't stop smiling...
>

Then Kaden and Preston were up to kick.... They were very passionate about their kicks...

And of course every kick ball game needs a cheerleader........... Since we had just returned from a football game where Sage was exposed to the world of cheerleading , Sage felt it her duty to provide the boys with the same encouragement .....to kick and run, run , run.....

Thanks Lee and Rob for a great evening...