memorial day

It was a busy Memorial Day weekend.
Chris had graduation and I had to work, so we knew we would be sticking close to home.

Lucky for us, we got to hang out with Chris's family.

We were so happy that great-grandma and aunt Carmen came by for a quick hello while they were in town decorating graves.

And there was a baby blessing.
This is Sharla and Tim's little dude, Ezra.
So cute!
Check out all that hair.

We went to see the field of flags.
It was chilly and threatening to rain, but it made us feel a bit warm inside.
And inspired our three kids to belt out "God Bless the USA" at the the top of their lungs.
Mom and dad had to join in.

I was glad we had a moment to talk about Memorial Day.
I always feel so grateful for the sacrifices that have been (and are being) made on my behalf.
For the sake of freedom.
And I believe very strongly that we should be grateful, but that these freedoms and blessings bring a responsibility.
We were lucky enough to be born into these privileges, but many are not.
I want my children to be aware of this.

We were so happy to have grandpa and grandma staying with us.
And while they were here, they wrapped a birthday present for Austin (his birthday is in 3 days) and left it high up on shelf in the garage.
It is making him crazy!!
He has been seen sitting on a chair in the garage, just staring at the packages.
He can't wait.

It is always so fun getting together and having cute little ones around.
Brooklyn is getting a special ride in the firetruck.
She was the birthday princess, after all.
We all went out to breakfast on her birthday.

And here is sweet Karissa.
She told me earlier in the day that it was her lucky day.
But, as luck would have it, she ended the day with a broken finger.
We took the kids to play at Bounce and they were all going down the slide in one big group.
Unfortunately, Carson landed just wrong on her poor little hand and her pinky finger was broken.
Dang!!
She seemed pretty proud of it when she returned from the ER and posed for my picture.
So maybe the lucky part is going to be showing it off at school :)

Engaging in a bit of healthy competition.


We spent many hours just hanging out, talking, catching up, and snuggling the new baby.

That's what makes family so great.