Back to School ~ A New Start at a New School

This year going back to school was not as easy for the kids (seems to be the theme in our family lately).  Both Taylor and Brandon were very nervous to start school in a new town, a new school and not knowing anyone in their class.  Despite the fears they both had a good first day and made a few new friends.  Taylor started 4th grade and Brandon started 2nd grade.  They both like their teachers and were excited to return after the first week ~ Praise God! 

First day of School
Taylor - 4th grade
Brandon -2 grade



Caleb started 1/2 day kindergarten 2 days later.  He was very excited to start school but was pretty nervous and shy his first day.  His teacher is great and I think she will do a great job with him.  I am sure there will be some bumps in the road, but I am confident his big heart will help win over his teachers and classmates.  It is harder to let Caleb go because there is always that fear of how others will treat him or if he will he be able to keep-up.   However,  most of the time he very capable and continues to amaze us with his abilities.  At this age the kids are pretty open and typically kind to each other despite any differences.  Just watching him get excited about school, running to get his backpack and starting so proud at the front door for his school picture was the highlight of my whole week! He is such a blessing to our family and we are so thankful for how God continues to provide and watch over him.  I can't wait to see how God will use him this year and how much he will learn! 



Caleb very excited to start Kindergarten



Our big 5 year old ~ first day of school!

The Blessing of Baseball & Softball

Before we moved I signed Taylor and Brandon up for baseball and softball through the Parks and Rec. program here in town. We hoped it would help them make new friends and maybe meet some new families. Just a few days after we got settled into our new house they both started practice.  Neither one was very happy nor excited about playing, but it turned out to be a huge blessing for our entire family.  Both of the kids had great seasons and really enjoyed playing. 

Taylor learned to pitch (fast pitch) and turned out to be the team's number one pitcher and pitched all four games in their conference tournament.  However, the best part of softball for Taylor was that she made several good friends which lead to a few sleepovers and several play dates.  Only bummer is none of the girls from her team will go to the school Taylor will be attending this fall. 

At first Brandon had mixed feelings about baseball, however after a few weeks and some extra practice in the backyard he started to enjoy it.  He really improved and enjoyed the other boys on his team, but never really made any great friends.  We realized that boys don't socialize as much as the girls when playing sports. 

 Overall the kids really enjoyed playing, both really improved and we loved spending our evenings attending the games as a family.

Taylor pitching

getting ready to pitch

Taylor at bat

Taylor hitting a triple!!

Brandon up to bat

hitting the ball

playing first base

Playing catcher - this was his favorite position!

Bear Lake 2011

For Charlie's birthday we spent the day at Bear Lake in Rocky Mountain National Park.

Nice views all away around the lake!

Cute moment

Brandon...

Emily being cute

Caleb needed me to carry him towards the end of our hike!

Cooling off by the river.

Emily Turns 3

Our sweet little girl turned 3 this month.  Yes, it is so hard to believe that our baby Emily is actually 3 years old.  This year she said she wanted an Elmo birthday so Taylor and I (with a little help from one of her new friends) baked and decorated a cake.  We celebrated with cake, ice cream, family and a few presents.   

Emily with her Elmo Cake

The Cake

Emily blowing out the candles

The girls

Emily with one of her presents

Opening gifts - she was so excited about everything!

Dr. Charles Couch

It is now official-on July 12th, Charlie successfully defended his dissertation.  After five and half years of reading, writing and research he is now Dr. Charles Couch.   He has earned a PhD in Education with a concentration in Leadership for Higher Ed Admin from Capella University.  It is hard to believe that it is actually over.  This has been a long journey filled with lots of ups and downs.  This accomplishment places Charlie in a very small minority of folks – less than 3 percent of the US population (age 25+) posses a degree at this level.   Even though the kids don’t understand the magnitude of his accomplishment they are overjoyed to hear that dad is done with school and they will no longer hear “Sorry but daddy needs to work on his paper tonight”. 

Charlie was so excited to eat the Oreo Ice Cream cake that he started to cut it before I could get a picture! 

4th of July Weeked Family Fun!

 Our weekend of fun started with a night at the Drive-in to see Cars 2 in Fort Collins. 

As you can see we had lots of fun!   

  

 On Monday we went to my sister, Bonnie's house to watch the Fort Collins fireworks from here back yard! 

We all had a great time -- good food, fellowship, and fun family time!

Watching the fireworks!



All the kids - Emily, Justin, Makenna, Taylor, Caleb & Brandon!



Caleb turns 5 Years Old

It is hard to believe, but Caleb turned 5 years old this month.  The journey has not always been easy, but we would not trade it for the world.  He has been a HUGE blessing to our family and we can hard believe how much he has grown and learned over the past five years.  For the first time, we celebrated his birthday with lots of family members.  Aunt Sheri even decorated his Lighting McQueen cake (with Taylor's help of course).    

Taylor and Brandon made cupcakes!

Cake, cupcakes, strawberries and chocolate and homemade ice cream!



Happy birthday boy!



Getting ready to blow out the candles

Blowing out the candles

The presents!

Caleb got so excited about his present that he hit Charlie in the face when he raised his arms