Cheers

Today Jason and Steve drank the first of many beers to come in the new bar area we are having in our new home. We have already named it "The Fox Hole."

Steve and Jason worked so hard today and I appreciate it so much! Everything is looking so great. The renovations are starting to take shape and I can see it all coming together. Thank you again for all the wonderful work. 

Date night

I made pizza and cookies for supper last night but these three enjoy the chocolate chip cookies the best!

Afterwards we went to the indoor playground to burn off some energy. This is the only pic I got of these energetic two. They were running, jumping, and sliding the whole time. 

We truly enjoy our "date nights" with the kids just about as much as Hollie and Jason enjoy theirs;). Have we mentioned how much fun it is to be aunt and uncle?! 

Watching Everlee

This is how Everlee wanted to have her milk this am. In her pink chair, Elmo sitting in front, watching Blues Clues. 

While I got breakfast ready and after Everlee was done with her bottle she joined Steve in the big chair to finish watching Blues Clues. 

We love our time with Everlee. She is such a smart, polite, and friendly little lady. The only drawback, if you can call it that, is that Steve says to me, "we should have another one" and I say "No."

Spreading the message

I have always known that my decision to place Lauren with adoptive parents through an open adoption was the right decision for me. Now, 22 years later, I am telling my story to help others explore adoption and see if that choice is right for them. 

A wonderful friend of mines son started a non profit called Beauty Amidst the Ashes right here in Ankeny.  I am so blessed to be a part of this organization. I am writing my story in blog form on the website. I am so excited to share my story and reach people that I otherwise wouldn't reach. 

The website is: www.beautyamidsttheashes.com

Click on stories of hope

Then click on birth mothers

I will write more posts as I am able. Right now were in the middle of moving so things are a little hectic. 

I don't claim to be  a professional writer. Just one who writes from the heart. Enjoy:)

Steve's 42nd Birthday

While Cooper and Hollie napped this afternoon I had the pleasure of playing with Miss Everlee. Her favorite words to say today were "no, mine, and Steve." We are working very hard on Brigett but I'm sure that will come as we spend more time together;)

Chloe was very excited to help decorate Steve's birthday cake after school. She did a fantastic job and boy was it delicious!

After a delicious supper grilled by Jason(thank you) we sang Happy Birthday to Steve. Wonder what his wish is? 

The men enjoying cake outside. 

While the ladies enjoyed their cake inside.

It was very fun to get together. This is what I was most looking forward to in our move to Polk City. Spending time with my family. Tyler is close enough that he got to join in on the festivities too. Which always makes it special for this mom. 

College Home

Today we moved Tyler into his college home. We met his roommate, Jacob Neerland, and his parents. We quickly became acquainted as our boys will be sharing a dorm and college experience for the next 9 months. We helped the boys settle into their new space, went out for pizza at Jeff's, and said our good byes. My only request from Tyler on moving day was that I receive a hug and he didn't disappoint. To my surprise, I didn't cry. The only emotion that came over me was how proud I was of him and how excited I was for him to start his adventure at ISU. For 18 years we have helped guide and mold him into the young man he is today. He may not know everything but I am positive he will figure it out along the way. And with that as he walked to his dorm and I drove away I knew he would do just fine in this next step of his journey called college life:) 

Moving day

For 28 months we called 1053 3rd St SE, Lemars Iowa our home. We have a lot of fond memories there, big and small. Yesterday we made the move to live in Ankeny, temporarily. We will close on our house this week, start rehabbing the inside, and then move to our permanent home in Polk City. There are so many thanks to give for all their help. The first goes to the Smith's. For the last 3 weeks they have opened up their home to Steve as he started his new job. They will continue to let us live there until our home is done. Next is my parents. For 17 years Tyler and I have lived within one hour from them. They have shared in so many day to day activities. I am so thankful they were able to share in the joy of raising Tyler. Last but not least the Kneifl's are letting us store our "things" in their third stall until our home is done. Even though they just got it cleaned out we filled it back up again. There are so many little but big things to us, they have done but we are grateful for them all just the same. Thank you to all of you for making our move smooth:)

Going away party

Today at work Tyler's coworkers took him out for lunch and got him some going away "college safety equipment."  They've all appreciated his hard work and wrote many words of encouragement to him moving forward. Friday will be his last day at the Lemars store but he will be transferring to the Ames store when he starts school on the 25th. 

Adventures in babysitting

I'm pretty sure this is the first time Steve has babysat in his whole life and he survived! It has been Steve's idea to give Hollie and Jason a date night as a thank you for letting him stay there. He sent me these pics with everyone smiling.  They enjoyed playing outside, watching Mickey Mouse and drawing. It looks like Steve will be bartering HIS babysitting skills when we need electrical work done at our new house;)

This weeks happenings

This past Monday Steve started his new job with Franklin Energy. When he gets home from work he is greeted by these two munchkins with their enormous amounts of energy ready to play. 

Steve also enjoyed helping Rich, Dan and Andy put the hitch and lights on Andy's bike. Andy and Brenda took our camper to Sturgis and are sure they are having a blast not sleeping on the ground. 

Steve is always fascinated by little Everlee. While she was in the garage helping the men with the bike she would hand Steve tools and say "thank you."  

I'm glad she is enjoying the meal I prepared for them. We will be enjoying many lunch dates together and I can't wait to spend them with her. 

Saturday morning we rode our bikes to the Hard Rock. $5, one pull, and mom won $200! She cashed out right away. 

After cashing out she treated us to brunch at the restaurant inside. It was delicious and great fuel to start our bike ride. We did a fun run through the loess hills. We stopped at some old favorites and some new places. The weather was perfect for riding. Another great day in the memory books!