Today we spent some time at a local park. I brought my camera, determined to get some new pictures of All Those Boys. I expected to get a few keepers, but to my surprise, they all ended up really good! Now I've been studying photography long enough to know how rare that is: the moon must have been in the same house as some planet or something. I'm not complaining though! I'm thrilled!

Luke at 15. He's growing up so fast.

Nick at 13. What a handsome young man!

Tyler at 9. Poor Tyler was very sick last week. I'm so glad he's feeling better!

And here's Chip at 2. He certainly knows what to do when a camera is pointed at him.

I completely expected today to be a rotten day. We were kicked out of our house for yet another open house. But I was wrong! I'm excited to have a bunch of new family pictures! Thank goodness for my trusty tripod. ;o)

First Day Of School

Mid-August brings with it the beginning of a new school year. In past years, that simply meant that we started spending copious amounts of time in the basement together as we picked up a new year's worth of homeschooling curriculum and got busy. For Tyler and Chip, that is still true. On Monday, we'll get down to the business of 4th grade and preschool. But for Luke and Nick, this year was very different. They returned to Wellsville Schools after being gone for five years. Both boys are very excited about this big change; Tim and I are comfortable with the decision, so all is good.

Here is Luke and Nick on their very first day of school! Aren't they cute? But not TOO cute, you hear me, little high/middle school girls!? Cute like in a mom kind of way.

We are not used to getting out and about so early in the a.m. While Luke and Nick are bright eyed and bushy tailed, Chip sums it all up quite well in this picture.

And these pictures show how they looked when I picked them up at the end of the day. I think we can easily tell how pleased they are with the whole big adventure. I sure will miss having these boys around all day, but am enjoying watching them grow up into such nice young men.

What a Corny Post!

Summertime just isn't summertime without corn on the cob, and that's a fact. We can't seem to grow corn in our garden so, recession or not, we are forced to buy it from people who have better gardening skills. It is one of our very favorite things to eat in the summer and long gone well before we are tired of it. Here, Chip shows you the perfect corn buttering technique.

And what good does all that drippy, yellow goodness do without a liberal sprinkling of salt?

Now that's the only thing we're liberal about in this house, mind you.

Finally, when it's done just so, there's nothing better than stretching out on your mom's bed to watch a little Barney and enjoy your summertime meal. Ahhh, life is good!

Cracking The Code

As you all well know, 50% of All Those Boys will be starting a new adventure in education this fall. That's correct, Luke and Nick will be attending Wellsville High School and Wellsville Middle School, respectively. They are excited. No, scratch that...they are EXCITED!!!!!! Today Nick and I stepped into the hallowed halls of the middle school to find his locker. He approached it with reverent wonder in his eyes. He soon mastered the art of opening said locker.

Let me assure you, these pictures do not fully capture the glow of delight on his face!

Tim and I are so pleased to see their enthusiasm. We've all enjoyed our time homeschooling together. Now we take joy in watching them begin to spread their wings just a bit.