Cicada Killers Killer

Yesterday, Joel was mowing the yard and trimming the hedges. He was then attacked by these GIANT wasp-like insects that were an inch to two inches long. They were flying into him and "attacking" him. Joel abandoned all yard work until we could figure out what to do. As cheap as I am, I finally let him call pest control. What we have is Cicada Killers. Sounds scary, but the males, which are the attackers ,don't have stingers. Their job is to intimidate. One of them sat on the fence all day just to guard the nest. So, he told Joel that he could take care of the problem himself for a lot cheaper.

Today was D-day. He wanted to purchase a bee keeper suit, but they were quite expensive. Here is the Cicada Killer killer. Ready and fully armed with two cans of wasp spray and fogger. Sadly, I do not have pictures with the goggles. I kept the laughter to myself because I didn't want to be the one facing these giant attacking insects.Operation Cicada Killer killing was a success. There were five nests on the sided of the house. Thanks, brave and manly husband. You are our hero!

One Month

Happy one month, Elliot! It is unbelievable how fast this month has gone by. You eat every three hours during the day and sometimes go 4-5 hours at night. I love the 5 hour nights. You have really found your voice over the past month. You have realized that if you don't speak up in this house, you won't get what you want. You also have decided that you LOVE to be held, especially in the evening when it is time to get dinner ready and get your brothers ready for bed. I don't mind though. I have come to realize how the "baby of the family" becomes the "baby". With you being the last baby in the house, I want to hold and snuggle you more. I want to cherish every tiny baby moment. You love being carried in the Maya Wrap. You fall asleep immediately and I can get things done, play with the boys, or actually go to the grocery store.

You have started smiling the past couple of days. They are very random and hard to catch on camera. Hopefully in the next couple of weeks, you will find our attempts at making you smile funny.
You have grown so much. Last week you went from your clothes falling off you to fitting you perfectly. I have no idea how much you weigh, but you look like you are filling out.

I love you so much, Elliot! You are such a blessing and I have loved every minute of this month!

Is that a trumpet player???

.....or is it just very creative usage of a breast pump???

Dino Creations

Clayton got this really cool dinosaur curator set for his birthday from his friend, Grant. It was a really difficult project, but the end result was exactly what Clayton had been dreaming of.

First, putting the Triceratops bones together.

Second, place dino in the mold. Then we had all these tiny pieces with numbers on it that we had to place all around the skeleton.

Third, make the gel, pour the gel into the mold and refrigerate over night.

Lastly, wake up in the morning, peel the mold apart and out comes a triceratops.

Look at this happy boy! All that hard work paid off.

The Cutest Outie

Who is the proud owner of the cutest outie belly button in the world????

It's Oliver, of course!!

He has an umbilical hernia that will be repaired on July 24th. The surgery seems to be a pretty easy procedure. Then he will be sporting a new belly button just in time for our beach vacation. It will be weird seeing him with an inny belly button.

Karate Kid

Clayton started karate this week and he LOVES it! He has been wanting to try it out for at least six months and we never had the time. He wants to go everyday and cannot wait until the next class.

Earning His Keep

It is time for Clayton to start earning his keep around here. He is always wanting us to buy him stuff wherever we go and doesn't understand why he can't have something every time we step foot in Target or Walmart. So, he is going to start earning an allowance and learning about saving, tithing, and spending money. Starting this week, he is going to be doing dishes, vacuuming, cleaning his bathroom, taking out the trash, and a few other chores. He will earn six dollars at the end of the month if he completes all of his chores. Every year he will get a raise to match his age. He will still be required to do his normal things to help out around the house and those things will not be a part of his earnings.

Hope it goes well. I would love to have a boy cleaning up the bathroom that is used by all boys. I think it is only fair since I do not pee on the floor.

Swimming Show Day

The boys have been taking swimming lessons for the past two weeks. Today was their show day to show us everything they have learned. They start out jumping in the water with their clothes on so they can see what it feels like in case they were to fall in on accident.

Oliver's Class

Oliver jumps in.

Back float

He has really become a fish this summer. He jumps of the board and swims to the steps all by himself. He can swim the short length of the pool. Pretty good for a three year old.

Here he goes.

Clayton is ready for his class to start.

A super cute three week old baby. He is loving the show.

Clayton is a great swimmer. He is swimming the entire length of the pool, diving in the deep end for rings, diving off the board, and doing flips. The next pictures are a sequence of his flip.

Beautiful dive.

Great job, boys!

Lights, Camera, Action

We have a friend who works for Blue Fish TV and they are doing a video on Finances. He asked to interview both me and Joel for the video and today was my day. It was a little nerve wracking because I had no idea what kind of questions they were going to ask, plus I am scared how I am going to look on camera adding 10 more pounds to my already large self. Hopefully they just got my head. The exciting part about this video is that they are interviewing Dave Ramsey also, so I could be on the same video as he is. Super cool! It was exciting to share our story on how we were in so much debt and were able to come out two years later being debt free. It would love for others to see how there is hope and it can be done.

House turned studio

The interview may be so bad that they scratch the whole thing...we shall see.

Backyard Friends

This is what we have hopping around in our backyard...

When Joel was mowing the backyard, all of these tiny bunnies came hopping out of their home. Joel had to scoop them all up and put them back so he wouldn't mow over them. They are so tiny.