A little peer pressure, please...

To celebrate the end of summer (well, you know what I mean... I would never, ever actually celebrate the end of summer!), Tyler took the older boys on a much anticipated trip to Chicago on the Amtrak. This picture is my absolute favorite from the many Tyler took that day.

Check out those eyes... just like his daddy.

For the record, I have no idea what that structure is in the background. Because I wasn't there. And maybe I should just know what it is anyway, but I don't. Because being pregnant four times has fried a lot of my brain cells.

That's what I like to tell myself anyway.

I missed this trip, because a three and one year old would have been on complete meltdown around hour three of the seventeen hour day. And you already know that we just don't do that.

But, we also want to take advantage of the ages that Jack and Trey are now. Fun, energetic, curious, learning ages.

So sometimes, we split up.

And it works.

For us.

Back to those amazing pictures.

There's no way I'm doing them justice. Because minus one famous Chicago building, and the ones who have the titles printed right on them, I'm pretty clueless about what is what.

So, I'm asking for a little help here. If you have a spare second (and you must because you're reading this!), leave a comment in the comments section (duh, where else!) encouraging Tyler to post about their fun adventure to (on the train) and in Chicago.

Maybe enough "votes" will convince him to share...

I think he definitely wins on the brain cells anyway, so I vote him.

A little peer pressure, please... :)

College town...

I love living in a college town for lots of reasons. MY college town. At first we wondered what it would be like coming back to Purdue country as a family instead of as college students. What we've found is a great balance of university energy and family friendliness.

During the school year, we don't get to campus much. It's a busy place. Don't get me wrong - I actually look forward to when the students arrive in the Fall. The city comes alive, and it brings back some great college memories (along with the other memories of Organic Chemistry... oh dear). But traffic gets a little hectic, parking becomes more difficult, and I have to redevelop my skills in dodging fearless jaywalking pedestrians.

I'm quick on the ol' minivan brakes, don't you worry.

But summertime. Oh, sweet summertime in this town...

We take advantage of walking around the quiet campus. The boys play in the fountains, and I tell them where I first kissed their daddy. Tyler and I reminisce about when we were young and thought we had so little time and so much responsibility.

You heard that right.

That's what I thought when I was taking approximately two naps per day. In between eating breadsticks at the Union and hanging out way too much with four guys who lived on Littleton Street when I should have been studying.

But do cut me some slack, if for no other reason than Organic Chemistry.

Sounds like a good time to change the subject.

So we played in the fountains and I tried to get a sweet brother picture after they were done.

Because when there are great flowers in the background, every mother wants the perfect frameable picture.

Why I try, I'm not quite sure. I think I must have told Trey 10 times to keep his gum in his mouth.

...which caused even more distractions...

...and more...

Until finally I made him throw the gum in the flowers.

There.

I can live with that. :)

Summer memories...

A trip to Tropicanoe Cove with Grandma and Grandpa Fincher... Lots of bike riding with friends...

Four weeks of swimming lessons...

T-ball for Trey (and coach Dad)...

Fun at the ballpark for Chaser...

First year Pinto for Jack...

Still here...

...and with lots to say... I'm just one busy momma! The last week or so has been packed full of good, but busy stuff. Just for fun, here's a glimpse into our lives these last few days:

- We spent our last few play times with our great friends, the Zuyderwyks. Tyler and some other guys helped them load up their moving truck last week and we said our tearful goodbyes as they began their new adventure to New Mexico. My boys have grown up with Brock and Tristan, and they're going to miss their good buddies!

- Hosted an awesome Father/Son camp out in our backyard over Labor Day weekend! The original plan was for Tyler, Jack and Trey to try out a campground for the first time, but everything was booked over the holiday. So, they opted for our backyard instead - this time with our brand new tent! The Beaver boys joined us overnight, and they enjoyed lots of pudgie pies, S'Mores, ribs, backyard creatures, light saber duals, biscuits and gravy, sticks, and general boy stuff. Fun!!

- Chase started preschool!! That cutie - he loves it. And I love it that he finally has something to call his own after watching the big boys do their thing all this time. He goes Tuesday and Thursday mornings from 9-11:30am, just enough time for me to lay Tess down for a nap and start a load of laundry. :)

- We've had a some neat opportunities to minister to some families this past week. We've taken some meals to friends who've had babies, plus another one to a busy, recovering momma with a recently repaired ACL.

- The hatch on the van door finally got fixed! This seems terribly lame and insignificant to even mention, until you try to unload your groceries with a baby in one arm, a grocery bag in the other, all the while propping the hatch up by your forehead. Yeah. Hopefully no one in town actually spotted me doing this.

- The big boys started Fall baseball (Trey's crazy into it. Jack, not so much), and the-momma-without-a-nursing-infant-for-once started attending a Ladies' Workshop at church on Wednesday nights.

- One very sweet husband spent his morning off work taking care of the little ones so I could make an early morning trip to visit the Paschals at Riley Children's Hospital last Thursday. It was an emotional trip for me for many reasons, one being the fact that we spent many hours in the same hospital treating Jack's urinary reflux a few years ago. Nolan is doing great post-surgery... please continue to pray for his recovery!

- We even squeezed in a garage sale (ok, it dominated our lives for days on end) with our neighbors last weekend. I am seriously a glutton for punishment. I thought about throwing in the towel half-way through pulling out every item out of every cabinet and closet I own, but then realized that I'd be stuck with one huge mess if it didn't all go. Somewhere. It ended up being time well spent after all: we lost some significant clutter (even after all of the men in my life carried at least one thing back into the house...), and gained almost $600 bucks to show for all of our junk. Sweet.

- A baby shower for my cousin back in my hometown, plus our first meeting for our new small group bible study rounded out Sunday. All of this in one week!

Did I mention the two sick kids, the girl who learned to climb up onto everything overnight, and the rebellious three year old?

Never a dull moment, folks...