Some pics from our outing today...

Since Larry is on a study break right now, we had a chance to get out of the house and go to the park today. It was a beautiful day, and afforded us the opportunity to get some great photos. Here is one of my personal favourites; I will refer to it often when I need a reminder of how blessed I am to have these five people in my life.


Our two youngest are bonding already (Benjamin just doesn't know it yet).


This one pretty much speaks for itself:


Here are a couple of pictures of the beautiful park we visited.




Believe it or not, this is the first time either Jonathan or Mae have attempted to climb a tree. What were we thinking? ;)






'Course Larry knows how to climb a tree...and insisted on hoisting Jonathan up into it despite my pleas and the repeated rolling of my eyes...


Then of course Mae wants a turn...


And what kind of Daddy would he be if he denied THAT face??

Cincinnati girls at heart...

Well here are a few pics of another "stellar wardrobe choice" as promised! :) Our girls wore these to church on Sunday and then to an engagement party afterwards. Ain't they cute?



How'd that stinky lambie sneak in there? ;)

I finally caught one...

A smile, that is...Ben's been smiling for a while now, but today he actually kept going long enough for someone to bring me the camera!



Larry was practicing his sermon last night and decided he needed a practice audience -- this is what he came up with! :D



It has been said that Grace runs something like an elephant. I think this photograph may give the viewer some insight into why that has been said...;)And if not, well it's a cute photograph.



And the following photos were taken "just because"...

Our four babies :o}

Grace at 17.5 months, Mae at barely 3 years old, Jonathan at 4 years 7 months, and Benjamin at 3 weeks 3 days old...gotta love 'em!

We paid off the car today...

about a year early! Now granted, the Aussie baby bonus provided the funds for us to do so. However, had we been financially irresponsible over the past few months I am sure that we would have been paying bills with that money and not paying off our car (as has happened with previous baby bonuses, unfortunately).

We have learned a thing or two over the past few months about frugality and good stewardship. If anyone is interested, we'd be happy to share what we've learned. If not, that's okay too... ;) We are just thankful for a few hints the Lord sent our way via some very good friends! And we're happy that the hints are working!

Benjamin is Beautiful

Benjamin at 2 weeks, 3 days old...such a serious little guy! :o)

Jonathan and Joelle

Jonathan was very interested in marriage a couple months ago. In particular, he wanted to know whether he could marry Mae, or perhaps Mommy. So Daddy explained that he had to marry someone outside the family. "Who's not in our family?" he asked.

The first girl we thought of was Joelle, who attends the same church we do. He thought he'd like to marry her, so Daddy said, "When you're older, you can ask her to marry you."

And he did ask her when he was older -- just a few days older. The next Sunday at church, when Joelle arrived, he walked right to her and popped the question. He then walked back and sat down in front of Daddy to play with some blocks on the floor. He casually remarked, "She said 'yes.'"

Daddy, having forgotten about the marriage discussion of a few days prior, said, "She said 'yes' about what?"

Jonathan replied, "She said she'll marry me."

That was 9 July 2006. Since then, they've been a cute couple. Joelle has knocked back at least one other suitor, and Jonathan looks forward to Sundays. They've had one "date" so far, at a nearby indoor playground.

Below is a picture of the young couple:

Benjamin's first day at church

All of our children have attended church on their first Sunday, unless their first Sunday is also the day of their birth, as with Benjamin. Here he is, one week old:

Guess who likes bread . . .

New pics of Ben, 6 days old...

Benjamin just keeps on getting better looking! :D He continues to be a peaceful and placid little man, smiles frequently (yes really!) and is just SO sweet!

I have been having a difficult time recovering postpartum (even though the birth itself was great). It seems I lost enough blood that it has been difficult to catch up and the past few days have been miserable. I am feeling considerably better today, though, and I am more thankful for that than I can say. Not to complain, but the past few months have been very painful for me physically and I am happy that I can finally see an end to it.

Larry has been trying to balance taking care of his family (all of us, since I haven't been able to do much at all this week) and the demands of his studies. We would all appreciate your prayers for him in this difficult time as well. He has a lot of deadlines looming ahead of him and it is very stressful. He is handling it very well, though.

The other 3 children are doing very well. Grace seems to be adjusting, though she still seems jealous of Benjamin at times. They are all just such a source of joy, though, and Larry and I know we are very, VERY blessed.

Here are the pics -- enjoy!