Picnic in a Park

Eric thought it would be a good idea to have a family night tonight, so we packed a picnic dinner and headed off to his favorite park..the Loveland park. We hadn't been there in probably two years, so none of the boys really remembered it, so it was new to them and they loved it. It's known for its bike trail that actually reaches all the way to Columbus. Crazy, huh? They have really fun slides at this park. There was one that they came flying down. It might possibly be the favorite park for slides.

After the playtime at the park, Eric decided to surprise the kids with some shaved ice. It was a monster cup and we all shared in a cute little gazebo there at the park. Check out our tongues. Now the question is...can you figure out who's tongue is in the picture?

Great Grandma & Kaleb

My Grandma is 93 years old. She just had a birthday last week. She loves my kids, and I'm ashamed to say it...they don't get to see her as often as they should. I love it when the kids interact with her. Here is Kaleb just having a good 'ole time with her, and her just enjoying time with her great-grandson. This one's my favorite.

Chicken Croquet

I don't know...there's just something about this game that makes me laugh. You play regular croquet, but the object is to be the first person to get 2 eggs from the chicken. And the way you get the eggs from the chicken is by hitting the ball into the chicken's chest, and the the chicken lays an egg. Come on.....that's pretty funny.
We've had the game for quite awhile, but I consider it and outdoor game, so it's played with very seldom. Luke wanted to pull it out today and was overjoyed when I agreed. Let's see..I'm thinking that Luke won once, and so did Jakeb. After a couple of games, the water guns won out, and poor little chicken croquet was abandoned.

Spiderman 3

Did I mention that Eric took the boys to see Spiderman 3 the other night. It was already at the cheap theater, and so for less than $2 each, they went and watched it, well just the three older boys. I stayed home with Makenna and Kaleb. It was some good bonding time for Eric and the older boys.
What was funny was Blake had been asking everyone what they thought of it before he went. I mean, everyone. They all gave pretty much the same response...."It was okay." But regardless what they said, he was sure that he was gonna love it. When he got home he looked at me and thumbs sidewaysed it....which means it wasn't a thumbs up or a thumbs down, but it was thumb sideways ...meaning...it was okay. Sometimes he builds stuff up in his head so much, that he's disappointed when he actually gets to see it or use it like.......his Superman Inflato-suit that he got for Christmas. Remember that?
Eric enjoyed it, and said that he liked it all except for the ending. It was too anti-climatical. (at least I think that was the word he used for it) It kept building and building for a great big ending, and let you down at the end. But Jakeb and Luke both liked it. In fact, Jakeb's going around saying..."My favorite Spiderman is Spiderman 10." (So he missed a couple in there, but it's still funny.) I still look forward to seeing it one of these days.

Born in the U.S.A.

Here's some fun pictures I took of Makenna today on the eve of her one month birthday. I didn't take any on the fourth of July of her with all the craziness going on around here, so I wanted to make up for it.

One Month Old

So here's the story. I couldn't remember what day Makenna was born on. I asked Eric the other night if she was born on the nineteenth. I was making her birth announcements. Well, this is where it gets a little confusing because he thought that I said the 18th, and responded the 19th. Well, I thought he said the 18th, so I made her birth announcements stating the 18th. (I'm so happy that I didn't print them out.) Anyway, this whole conversation is a crazy cycle in itself because we both say that the other person said the different date...so we have agreed to disagree about this one.
Fast forward to today on the 18th. I'm taking her one month pictures next to the doll, and I also took some other pictures too. I was telling my friend Niki about the because I had just blogged them, and she said..."Oh, they are so cute, but wasn't she born on the nineteenth?"ARGHHHH!!! That's what I had originally thought. So sad when the mom can't correctly remember the day that she gave birth. (You know what's really sad is that I was telling people for Luke's first year that he was born on the 12th instead on his actual birth date, the 13th.)
So here's her one month eve pictures next to the doll. If I find time to take a picture of her next to the doll tomorrow, I will; but I seriously doubt she's gonna grow too much in one day. I think she's grown so much since the last picture. Just look at the 4 days old pictures and then compare them to the one month old pics. Time sure does fly.

Sharonwoods w/ friends

We went to Sharonwoods today with Mindy and her girls. We originally went to the colored area where the water was, but it was very, very warm outside so we opted to go to the museum park which the kids ended up liking better. (so did us moms....there was lots of shade!) The kids had a great time playing. It was fun to watch Jake and Makenzie play together and also Kaleb and Abigail play. (Check out Mindy's blog for more cute pictures of the kids.)

Cute, huh?
Luke and Makenzie
Kaleb and Abby Note: Kaleb's beautiful socks!!! He dressed himself this morning.
The water area is finally complete at Sharonwoods.
Kaleb not too sure about the water area.
Blake making a splash.
Jakeb once again going up the slide. Note: Jakeb's little hands have mulch in them that he's not supposed to have in them. See how he's trying to hide it from me. Even though he's already four, he's still...preciously evil.

Random facts

Never in my life have I: had a completely clean house.
High school was : a blast
When I'm nervous : sweat
My hair : is getting less and less curly and more and more frizzy and grey
When I was 5 : I lived in Illinois, and my best friend’s name was Shannon Holley,and I had a crush on a boy named Jonathan Ritter.
When I turn my head left : a bookshelf full of idea books and empty albums along with a ton of completed layouts that should be in those albums.
I should be : cleaning or sleeping
By this time next year : Shoot, I can’t even hardly plan next week, much less than next year. However I do know that I’ll have 5 kids 7 and under by next year.
My favorite aunt is : I only have two,and to choose would just be wrong But I do love my Aunt Evola and Aunt Jo. See I’m just not choosing.
I have a hard time understanding : how God can constantly forgive us over and over again, and still love us.
You know I like you if : hang out with you or simply just laugh with you and make jokes
My ideal breakfast is : crunchy peanut butter on an Eggo waffle…..sounds gross, but it’s not.
If you visit my home town : I consider my hometown in Florida where I grew up, not where I was born. If you did visit, I would show you where I lived and where I went to school and church.
If you spend the night at my house : you would hear Makenna cry when you’re trying to sleep.
My Favorite blonde is : Kaylee, my niece
My favorite brunette is : my other niece, Alexandria
The animal I would like to see flying besides birds : an elephant would be funny to see flying or maybe a giraffe.
I shouldn't have been : goofing off in school so much when I was younger, but man, I sure had fun.
Last night I: I fell asleep on the couch holding Makenna
A better name for me would be : Seriously, do I look like anything but a Marshan. However, I’ve always liked the name Toni Michelle
I've been told I look like : uhh….my dad???

the Addition

Some of you have been asking about the addition to the house. Well, it's kind of on a stand-still. Eric is working on it when he can, but he doesn't have a lot of time. He has put the siding on the front of the house, and he has also taken out the living room window and drywalled in the empty spot. So work is getting done...just in very small doses.

Happy Birthday, Amy!

Today was my friend Amy's birthday. We met up at Toot's for lunch to get their great lunch special for the day. It was 10 wings and fries for $3.99. Now you know that I love Toot's wings, and she loves them just as much as I do...not to mention their fried dill pickles. Yum! We took all the kids with us....did I mention kids eat free? Anyways, it was a great lunch. I did feel kinda bad when she paid for it....I mean, it was her birthday, not mine...but she did owe me a free Toot's meal (thanks to a friendly little wager that we made awhile ago). I wasn't expecting her to pay for it today, but it sure was nice that she did. Thanks, Amy.(I guess you won't be making any more friendly wagers with me, huh?)

Afterwards we went to a little park off of Old Irwin Simpson Road, and while we do not have a color name for this one, we call this the Merry-Go-Round Park because it has a merry-go-round at it...I know...you probably couldn't have figured that out yourselves. The kids had a great time. They managed to get pretty filthy since there was mud by the merry-go-round, but come on.....a merry-go-round is sooooo much fun. That was one of my favorite things at a park when I was a kid.