Skateboarding...

So Jake is really into skate boarding right now!  He has been practicing at home for awhile now and has been asking to try out our local skate park.  On Saturday morning we took him over to try it out...he really impressed me!  He is so brave on those ramps and really good at them too!

More Pics From Friday Night

Funny Faces

After the concert we watched a baseball game.  We weren't all that into the game, but we sure did have a great time hanging out and talking to friends.  Why is it when friends get together they get silly?  Check out all the funny faces that night!  Everyone was having a great time!

The Hawk Nelson Concert

We went to a Hawk Nelson concert with Steve & Laura and Diane & Eric and all of the kids last Friday!  I'm glad we got to fit one more fun thing in before school started this week.  The Burger girls got to take their picture with Daniel from the band and Luke was really excited to see Bob and Larry there too.  

Mommy's Big Helper

This morning we stopped at the grocery store to pick up a few things.  Usually Luke rides in the front of the cart, but today he wanted to be a "big helper" as he called it.  So he pushed around one of those mini carts.  He helped me put items in the cart, scan them at the self check out, and push the cart to the car!  It was so cute!

Harvest 2008

We went to Harvest this year!  It was so great!  We saw Leeland, Lincoln Brewster, Kutless and P.O.D., they were all awesome!  But the best part of the evening was seeing so many people go forward to commit their lives to Christ....it was really moving.  Look at all those people who went out on the field!  Incredible...

The Best Show in Town

This weekend we went to see my niece in her performance of the Aristocats.  She did so awesome! She recently joined a children's theatre group and has been practicing for several months. Congratulations Cameron!  We can't wait to see what you star in next!

Vince's Spaghetti

                                              You can slurp it...
                                               Pile it on bread...
                                              Eat it with friends...
                                               Twirl it...
               Or make a spaghetti sandwich!  Anyway you eat it, it's GOOD!

If you're from around here...you've been to Vince's!  We were there recently with Diane and the boys and I was able to catch the pure joy that place brings!  Look at the happiness on those kids faces.  I know where you're going for dinner tonight...

Summer Camp According To Jacob...

Jake had a blast!  He always does!  Summer camp is sooooo his "thing"!  When he got home he kept saying, "Thank you mom for sending me to camp!" "I had so much fun!"  But I could barely understand him because he lost his voice!  Now that's a sign of a good time!  He was able to bunk with his two best friends in the world, Blake and Michael.  They got to use the water slide in the lake, the blob, the canoes and the floating ice wall.  They went hiking and  polar bearing.  This is when you go to the VERY cold lake and see how long you can go under and hold your breath! He loved the skate board park, ultimate Frisbee and spent time in the pool too!   He and his bunk mates decided to paint their faces on the last day...they looked like the Incredible Hulk!  What great memories!  We are glad to have him back home too!  Everything is back to normal now...(sigh!)

Summer Camp According To Mariah...

Mariah had an awesome time at camp!  She had a great counselor and a wonderful group of girls in her tent.  They had so many great experiences.  Her favorite was the Flying Squirrel!  She did her best to explain it to me...I understand it includes helmets, harnesses, ropes and flying through the air!  She tried archery for the first time.  They swam in the lake.  She took a cooking class.  They went berry picking.  She went hiking to the Lost Mine and even went for a canoe ride! She told me that the food was, "pretty good", and took a picture to show us!  She says it's still to early to tell if she'd like to go again next year, but was glad she went this time!  We missed her very much and are so happy to have her back home!

Our 12th Anniversary

       

We decided to head to Vegas to celebrate our twelfth wedding anniversary!  Since two of our four children were gone at camp this week, we took the opportunity to get away.  We had so much fun!  We saw a magic show and Tournament of Kings, both of them were great.  We even  traveled to the top of the Eiffel Tower...the view was incredible!  But my favorite was the Bodies exhibit.  I know it's not for everyone, but this was probably my favorite!  It is so fascinating to see how intricately the human body works and what it takes for each of us to function every day!  When you see something 

like this, you can't help but think of how amazing God is to have created us in such detail.  Unbelievable!  Thank you Patsy for coming to stay with Dylan and Luke so we could go away.  Thank you Mario for your commitment to our marriage!  Thank you for getting up at 5am everyday and working outside in the heat.  Thank you for putting the kids to bed at night when I'm worn out.  Thank you for going to get us Dairy Queen late at night for a special treat.  Thank you for coaching our children's sports teams.  Thank you for going on walks with me in evenings.  (I could go on and on...but those are some of my favorites.)  We have come so far.  I can't wait to see what the next twelve years have in store for us!  I love you!

Summer Camp

Mariah and Jacob are at camp all this week!  This was Mariah's first year and she was a little bit nervous.  But Jacob did his best to put her at ease and describe all of the fun activities they would be doing through out the week!  We dropped them off on Sunday and can't wait to hear about all of the exciting experiences that they've had this week!  We will share them with all of you when they get back!