A lot of catching up....

I have thought about quitting blogging. Because who has time to blog, really. But then my little friend Macey Marrs told me that she used to be my 'biggest blog fan', back when I used to blog that is. So Macey, this post is just for you.

Jude got me set back to iphoto, so I went back all the way through September and picked out a few of the highlights. Which made me realize that when I'm not blogging, I'm not taking many photos. In fact, when I went to get out my fancy camera yesterday, I realized that I had forgotten how to use it on the manual setting! Now that is sad!


So here are some of the (few) pictures I've taken over the past few months. I promise I will do better, Mom and Dad, now that I have iphoto back. At least I 'think' I will.

Here are the two September birthdays...Hope and Joseph. Both age 7. Next month I will have FOUR 7 year olds!

We had all three of these little munchkins on a little special needs soccer team, briefly. They were the only ones on the team! And after about the 4th week of practice, we realized Zoya would rather dress up in butterfly wings, Joseph would rather write on his face with magic marker, and Ava would rather keep her little bald head in the shade. Needless to say we didn't finish the season, but at least I got this really cute picture.

Hope learned to ride a bike! Thanks Aunt Lisa!

The guys tore out the particle board stairs and replaced them with beautiful oak...I can't believe I haven't taken an 'after' photo yet. And I can't believe we survived over a week with our staircase looking like this!

The cousins from Minnesota came to visit for Thanksgiving (yes, in the midst of the staircase chaos). I took a look at the above scene and said, "Man that's a lot of kids!"....And grabbed my camera.

Only four kids went trick or treating. The other rode in the van and made fun of the kids trick or treating...(Ugh, teenagers!)

We literally threw costumes together in five minutes,  because I really  had no intentions of trick or treating, which is why Joseph is technically wearing PJs as Spongebob. Hope was my favorite, as cafeteria lady, "Marge", complete with apron, pot, ladle, and hairnet. 

This was really special. About fifteen years ago, before we ever had kids of our own, we were foster parents. This beautiful young bride and her sister lived with us for about nine months as their parents were going through some tough times. Fifteen years later, this September, Kim got married, and she asked John to walk her down the aisle and give her away. It was really an honor for him (and for me too). We have learned first hand that there are some really neat kids in the foster care system. And neat foster kids turn into neat adults. It's been a blessing to keep in touch with these girls for all these years. We love you, Kim and Teri!

And now, for the most unexpected and exciting news of all!!..............................................................................

We found ourselves a few weeks ago, with a VERY pregnant dog. The neighbor dog got to Nellie before we got around to getting her spayed (which was on my long list of things to do eventually). 

Regardless, here are the newest little mouths to feed.  They will ALL need new homes, so if you or someone is in need of a Christmas puppy, just let me know!

The kids gave them temporary names to differentiate who was who.

Just imagine nuzzling up into their soft warm fuzz, hearing their little whimpers in your ear, smelling their sweet puppy breath. Just picture how cute one would look with a big red bow around its neck, sitting under your Christmas tree. :) Your kids will love you forever!