Happy Birthday Lucas!

Lucas turned 6 today!
We started celebrating two weeks ago in Oregon (near Newport) with all his cousins (7 boys total) at a beach house. Here are a few photos. The party did include a Pinata, a cool game of Pin-the-Tail-on-the-Donkey and of course, cupcakes!
Sand fun.
Cupcake decorating with Grandma A.
Party time! Lucas and Henry?! :)
The crew.
Baby Logan...baby Dominic was snoozing and missed part of the party.Daddy, Lucas & Mommy.
Games.
Marcus 1, Axel 2, Duncan 3 sandwich!
The pinata. Marcus.Axel.Duncan.
Lucas
Henry.Getting the goodies!
Yesterday started out with a trip to Bounce U, an indoor bouncy gym with all sorts of inflatables. Our friends were able to join in on the fun!
After awhile, Axel & Will decided the water fountain provided more entertainment than the equipment.
Lucas' big request for the day was to stay home. After traveling ALL summer, I think this was a perfect choice for the whole family. It also gave me plenty of time to work on the cake.
And decorate...and wrap...and all those fun birthday things.
I love how the cake turned out. I based my idea on one I found online. I wish I could give credit to whomever posted the photo but she did not leave a name. Thank you Miss StarWars Cake Lady!
Dinner was steak (hummus for Axel), artichokes, corn-on-the-cob, strawberries, crescent rolls and root beer. Lucas opened one during the day that kept him very busy. He's really into crafts so it was a Fab Effex kit (flexible fabric with a workable wax backing) which was fun but challenging to work with. Then to the rest of the presents! Mini light saber kit.Axel didn't miss out but did have a little trouble with the fact that it was not his birthday. We explained that he would be turning 3 on his next birthday and would get lots of presents too. Today, he told me he was 3 years old! Smart boy!
Sparkly diamonds and jewels.
Leapster games...THANK YOU GRANDMA & GRANDPA J.
Rocket Kit from Daddy.Lots of parts! Good luck Daddy! :)
Soaring into Flight Science Kit...THANK YOU GRANDMA & GRANDPA A.
Snorkel gear for Florida!
I love this!
Then on to the cake.
Can you believe this boy is SIX!?!?!?!?!
He must have made a great wish!So did this one. :)
Showing of his new "6" status.
Down to business.
Guess what?! Mommy was there too!
What a great time and what a great boy! Happy Birthday Lucas. We love you so much!!! Love, Mom, Dad & Axel

First Day of Kindergarten!

It's true, Lucas is in school! We returned from a 2 1/2 week trip to Oregon on Saturday and today, he headed to Kindergarten! He did very well waking up early (3:30am Oregon time) and was in a great mood. Lucas' breakfast request was homemade pumpkin pie and he ate two slices. I think he was mostly excited but a little nervous too as to be expected.

As for Mom, it's WAY HARDER for me. I'm glad to have Axel home and be able to spend more time with him. However, I was not quite ready for Lucas to go to all day school. I hope he is having fun and misses me just a little. :)

Lucas, we are SOOOOO VERY PROUD OF YOU! Congratulations on your First Day of School.

Tomorrow, we will celebrate Lucas' 6th birthday and because of staggered starting, he gets the day off from school. Not a bad deal if you ask me!

I will be getting to all our photos and posting them on the blog. WE ARE WAY BEHIND but have so many adventures to share with you all. Thanks for your patience this summer while we traveled around the U.S. having a wonderful time.

Love, Janelle
That's my BIG boy!!!!

June & July Highlights

We have been gone for over a month. We headed out west to enjoy Colorado, Wyoming and Utah once again. We've decided that June is the perfect time for a long trip to escape the humidity and hot days of the east.

Our air conditioner stopped working yesterday while it was being "serviced" so the house is sweltering so you are only going to get photos until I get cool enough to think about what to write. :)

Enjoy!
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Aunt Kate and Uncle Mark's House.
A few trips to Lander to enjoy climbing and the beautiful wild flowers.
Cousin Logan


A spot in Montrose, CO where I grew up. We spent a wonderful day with The French's and Lucas hit if off with Ruth's son, Thomas. Ewan and Axel tried to play with the big kids too but mostly settled for cars!

A day with a dear friend from elementary school, Angie and a trip to my childhood house.

A trip to Ouray, CO...one of my favorite spots on Earth.

Quick visit to see Rob Pizem and his wife in there new home.
Time with Grace and Bryan in Palisade, CO.
Monument Nat'l Park in Grand Jct, CO

4th of July at Lake Powell, UTBekila's house.
Father's Day
Good-bye to a dear, dear friend.
Visit from Grandma & Grandpa Anderson

After returning from on a Thrusday, we unpacked and repacked for a quick climbing trip to West Virgina. The temperatures were beautiful but there was bad news. I LOST OUR CAMERA! With it, I lost two memory cards with the last part of our trip. So, our last week spent in Lander, WY with Steve & Ellen during the climbing festival and my visit with old college roommates in Golden, CO have no photos. I'm super bummed and just kicking myself for not being more careful with it.

PHEW! We are back...

June and July have flown by! So sorry for the quiet blog but we have been busy to say the least!!!

We put our house on the market in May, Mikes parents came for 10 days in June and we just got home from a 30 day road trip around Colorado, Wyoming and Utah!!!

Boy oh, boy do I have a million photos and things to share. I will get at them after we get settled a bit.

Positive thoughts needed in this slow housing market!!!!

Love to you all.
Janelle, Mike, Lucas & Axel