Accessories

Lately Laine has taken to accessorizing her outfits.  While I rarely add anything but a small pair of earrings to my wardrobe Laine has decided that hats, necklaces, and purses are the way to go.  She's becoming all girl!

Mouse trap

There is no good excuse for the lapse in blogging, but one of the things that has been occupying our time lately is trying to catch a little "critter" that has found its way into the house.  Apparently he likes chocolate chips because he's nibbled holes in several different bags over the past couple weeks.  Our host family is gone for the week, so Penny and I decided to take it upon ourselves to try and actually catch the mouse rather than just blocking the way into the pantry.  

Last night we set out several glue traps in the pantry.  This morning one was gone!  The good news is that a mouse must have gotten stuck to it, but the bad news is that the mouse also must have wandered away.  After about half an hour of searching for the missing trap we discovered it... with no mouse attached.  So now we are trying traditional snap traps.  Any tips on how to bait a mouse trap or where to set the trap?  Hopefully this will be resolved soon - it's kind of an eerie feeling to know something is wandering around the house at night.

A few pics

Here's Penny dressed as a spy that Rahab hid.  He spoke each day of VBS to this class of fifth graders.  They loved it!

This one is just a fun picture of Laine taken by Pop while we were in Charlotte.

Vacation Bible School

No pictures yet, but we've been in vacation Bible school this week.  Penny has been teaching a Bible lesson to the fifth graders each day for about 20 minutes.  I think his favorite part has been dressing up in costumes!  Seriously though, he's gotten good feedback and feels like it hasn't been as difficult as he thought it would be to connect with the kids.

Laine and I have been in the two-year-old classroom.  She is one of the youngest kids in the class, but it has been really fun to see her learn to participate in organized group activities.  We do several crafts, trips outside, and story times each day to keep the kids moving through the morning.  And of course we've had snacks.  Seeing Laine in a classroom setting gets me really excited about sending her to school one day.  (She's growing up so fast!)  The creativity I've seen from this week alone reminds me why I need help from others to let Laine try new things.

We come home exhausted around noon each day, and both Laine and I almost pass out during nap time to recover from the busy morning.  It's been a really fun week, and at the same time I'm looking forward to some quiet mornings at home next week.  Hope to post some pictures soon.

Happy Father's Day!

Laine loves hanging out with her daddy - especially when they can read together.  Happy Father's Day Daddy!  We love you.

Trip to see family

Yesterday Laine and I made a trip to Charlotte to see her new cousin, McKinly.

We also got to see Nan and Pop and Uncle Blair and Aunt Brittany.

We loved our time with everyone.  Thanks for letting us come visit for the day!

Big News!

It's time I go ahead and let my blog readers know what we have been telling close friends and family for a few weeks now... we're pregnant!  We found out about this little baby shortly before we left for Greenville, and my gracious doctor managed to squeeze in an early ultrasound to make sure everything looked okay.  The day before Laine and I flew south I was able to see the baby (who looked like an oval) and his or her heartbeat (which looked like a flashing light in the middle of the oval).  Definite features or not, the baby looked healthy, and we are very excited.  I'm nine weeks along at this point, so the baby should be due mid January.  

Thank you to those who have been praying that God would increase our family.  And thank you ahead of time for the prayers that will continue to be lifted up on our behalf for this baby and me as I carry him or her.  Being the planners that we are, Penny and I want to find out if we will have a boy or girl.  Our first doctor's appointment upon our return to St. Louis should let us know whether Laine will have a little brother or sister.  We'll keep you posted as time goes on.

Kid's Planet

Kid's Planet is a playground in Greenville that I used to take kids to when I was babysitting.  It was really fun to take my own daughter here this morning!

Pools and Ponies

We spent some time this weekend with my aunt and her kids along with my oldest brother and his family.  

Laine loved her time in the pool, especially jumping in from the edge.

She also got to go on her first horseback ride.  

Our summer adventures continue...