Harvest

It's that time again! Luke couldn't get enough of watching the combine, taking rides, and hanging out with Grandpa and Uncle Matt (even though it was ridiculously hot!).

Just for fun, here is Luke last year at harvest. He was 3 months old and we had just moved here.
Matt gave him a ride in the wheat truck.

During the combine ride with Grandpa. Don't be fooled by his non-smiling face. He LOVED it and didn't want to get out of the combine.It turns out harvest is exhausting.

Cowboy Luke

We celebrated Father's Day lunch at Chad's parents and Chad's mom bought Luke some new cowboy boots. She pulled out their stick horse and straw hat and Voila! Instant fun! Not to mention, instant mini-cowboy. He loved every minute of it.Note to self: next time select "kids and pets" option on camera so pictures are not blurry. oops

When you pushed its ear, it neighed, snorted, made galloping sounds, much to Luke's delight.

The horse was chopped liver once Luke spotted Daddy's old tractor.Love it! Of course, the next day, we still had to wear the boots.

kiss the horse. We love our animals.

Splish Splash Splosh

This morning we met with Luke's playgroup at the splash park. It's a hot day, so perfect weather to get wet! Luke's splashed to his heart's content. I thought it would take him a little bit to get used to the idea, but he jumped right in! And of course thought he was big like the other boys running around. I think we'll be going back here a lot this summer.

waiting for the water to shoot out

I love summer!

HENfest

Last weekend we were in Colorado for the first ever HENfest (Henry Elizabeth Nisly [my grandparents] family reunion). My dad's family started as a family of 7 - his parents and 5 children. We have lost my grandma and 2 of dad's brothers. But, we are now an extended family of 33 (34 in October). We all stayed in a beautiful lodge up in the mountains and had a grand 'ol time. My Grandma would have loved it.

This is the whole gang, except for my grandpa who is not well enough to leave the nursing home.

Don't these pictures just look like we're on vacation? Mountains, balloons...what more could you want?
Have I ever mentioned that Luke is obsessed with my dad?
Well, so are his cousins. And they spent plenty of time fighting over his attention.
But don't be fooled, they LOVE eachother. We didn't tell them to do this. They hug literally every time they see each other. Even if it's only been 5 minutes.
This is my immediate family.

One day, some of the gang decided to go on a bike ride down Vail Pass. It. was. awesome. The views were breathtaking and it was so refreshing. We stopped along the way frequently to explore, enjoy the view, and take short hikes. Luke even rode along with us and loved every minute of it. Except when we didn't let him eat a rock.

Baby Boom

Congratulations to Chad's sister and BIL on the birth of their son, Seth Micah, born earlier this evening!! We can't wait to meet him!

Also, congratulations are in order for my sister and BIL...after having 2 boys, they just found out they are having a GIRL in late October!

Hooray for getting a new nephew and a new niece this year!

Finally Done!!

The bathroom, that is. Unfortunately, when our computer crashed, we lost the "before" picture, so you'll just have to envision dated pink everywhere...tile (on all the walls), on the floor, on the wallpaper. I love pink and all, but not in the bathroom! So, after approx. 4-5 months of hard labor, we have a beautiful bathroom. I can't take much credit. The only thing I did was strip all the wallpaper and pick out all the new stuff (with Chad, of course). Chad did pretty much all the labor himself, with a little help. And of course he works full-time, so everything was done on evenings and weekends (hence the 4-5 months). My brother Matt helped with some plumbing, removing/installing the tub and shower walls, my brother-in-law Keith helped with cutting and putting up some of the beadboard (unfortunately, he is not pictured below since Tanya and I were hard at work on other house projects at the time), and Chad's dad helped with laying the tile, hanging the giant mirror, and some electrical work.

Here is what it looked like for most of those 4-5 months (a super fun mess to try to keep a curious toddler away from!):

And here's the after:

The toilet and the fan are the only things that remain from the original. Yes, I said a fan. We are not sure why there is a ceiling fan in the bathroom. It may or may not stay. Jury is still out.

my cousin Gina helped me make this curtain...cute, huh?
Ta Da! My husband is awesome.

Giddy-up Cowboy

Last weekend we took Luke to his first rodeo. Nevermind it started about the time he usually goes to bed...he LOVED it! My parents have Luke one day a week while I work, and they spend a good chunk of time out looking at my dad's cattle. If Luke had his way, that's all they would do all day. ("Moo" was his first word, by the way) So, naturally, 2 1/2 hours of getting to sit and watch horses and cows run by was heaven for Luke. Mommy and Daddy were chopped liver as Luke would only sit with Grandpa all evening (except for about 2 minutes when Grandma snuck him some gummy bears *bribery*). There was not a peep out of him...he just pointed and pointed and Dad said he would kick excitedly every time a horse/cow/bull came running or bucking out of a chute. Let's just say getting Luke to sit anywhere for this long is a miracle, so you know he loved it.

My dad, as you can tell, is a bit of a cowboy himself. Back in the day, he actually competed in rodeos in the team calf roping event. My dad is such a stud, don't you think?

This pretty much sums up the evening. Point point point.

New Looks

Luke does this new thing where he gives you this awful scowl and then just busts up laughing. One day, it was like he was just playing with facial expressions, and when he did this one (see below), I could not contain myself and laughed. So, now he does it just to make me laugh.

Lookin' mean Lookin' less mean
Smile/giggle is just around the corner (nevermind the dumb picture is sideways)

He's also discovered he can imitate Mommy's fishy face.

And then there is the sweet potato 'do. I promise he styled his own hair! And please note the red spot just above his eyebrow. He took his first face dive into cement that morning. (The first of many, I fear.) He's tough though, and barely cried 10 seconds before wanting to run back and play.

In the Motherhood

Motherhood certainly isn't easy at times, but it is wonderful. Luke is a great kid and makes me smile every single day. Yes, even on the days he throws all of his food on my freshly mopped floor. The other day, I was really frustrated about something (unrelated to him) and he immediately sensed it. He came up to me and raised his arms to be picked up. The second I had him in my arms, he started kissing me profusely (open mouth, of course) and hugging and squeezing me as if to cheer me up. He gives me hugs a lot, but that was the first time I got that kind of affection unprompted. That makes a million dirty diapers worth it. Not to mention, since becoming a mother, I now get to dance every day and someone claps for me every time I sing. This is the life.

Happy Anniversary

May 6 is the day that we said "I do". It's been 4 years, and I've never been more proud to stand by my man. He's a keeper. Since we now have a child and no longer take pictures of ourselves, this pic is from our fabulous honeymoon in Hawaii...how many years do you have to be married before you can go on a second honeymoon?????