fall creek reservoir

 Uncle Erik was in town, so we took advantage of the beautiful weather & met the family at Fall Creek Reservoir.

 Everyone brought the water toys that they had & picnic lunches & dinners to share.

 Finley & Ronan on the kayak.

 Griffin, Ronan & Finley.

Swimming Cedar.

 Lunch break.

 Elsa's first visit to a lake at two weeks old!

 Uncle Erik on the stand up paddle board & Finley on the kayak.

 Go Gretchen!

 So much fun in the water!

 These boys worked hard to carve the log into a canoe.  ;)

 Taking the real canoe out!

 Cedar!

 Kenton!

Now for some fun, jumping off the dock photos:

 Cohen

 Finley

 Ronan

 Cohen

 Sadie on the kayak.

 Finn

 Becca on the kayak

 Splash!

Griffin & Cedar exploring in the grass.

 Running down the dock.

Elsa's admirers.

We stayed for hot dogs & smores & left after the sun had set.  It was a full, fun day at the lake.  Kinda made us wanna go camping...when Elsa's a little older.  ;)

back to school

 This year, Cedar started Prekindergarten, 4 days a week!

 He gets to be in class with his friend, Emma.

 He was feeling a little shy on the first day, but it sure helps to have a familiar face in class.  :)

 Finley's first day of first grade was the next day.

 Handsome boys.  Their smiles are similar in both of these photos by the tree.  I can see more resemblance than I usually notice.  :)

 We all go to walk Finn to school on the first day!

 Feeling a little nervous.

 Looking a little more comfortable!

Showing us his new smile: missing a few teeth & already growing some adult teeth!

It's gonna be a great year!

grandparent's day

 We gathered all 9 cousins for a photo shoot for Grandparent's Day!

 It is quite challenging to capture a good photo of all 9 kids...especially during one of the longest thunder storms I've seen!  We were shocked by how much it rained!

 My children.

 Such sweet boys.

 The girls.

 The Novemberists!

 Oldest to youngest.

 This is a favorite!

Cute Tate & Elsa.

elsa's first week

 Home from the hospital.

 Napping in the cradle that I used as a baby.  Both of my boys used this cradle too.  :)

 She did not successfully sleep in this cradle for another 6 weeks or so.  ;)

 Big brother, Finley, giving Mama a break from nursing!  The first couple weeks of nursing were quite difficult & dealing with a thrush infection made it super painful.  Thankful for the help!  

 Sweet brothers.

 "Playdate" with Harriet.

Elsa & Harriet are 5 days apart.  They're going to be so fun to watch as they learn & grow!