What a Birthday!?!?!?!?

Just a few pictures from Amelia's birthday! She is sick(thank you Auntie Kendall, ha ha) and has 2 teeth breaking through. So you can imagine that she was not thrilled with the news that it was her birthday! There was no cake because Ben and I literally had 30 minutes together that day so we decided to make the celebrations short and sweet!

Hope you enjoy!

Love - Us

Ben got her a caterpillar that sings the alphabet and she screamed bloody murder!

Later she unwrapped 2 more presents and was somewhat happy!

This was her favorite! She got excited!

Carrying it around!

Bending over to see what is going to pop up!

Later that night she as on a roll!

She was laughing and playing!

Again, with the favorite toy!

This picture makes me sad, doesn't she look so long legged and grown up?

She reminds me of the Charlie Brown character, Linus ,with her blanket!










This is not a great video but it shows her walking around and her battle wound from the day. I finally put the old FRED PROOF gate in front of the stairs so she could meander around without boundaries. She ended up hitting her face on the corner of the trim! She loves the freedom and now I have to really baby proof the rest of the house!

Happy 1st Birthday, Amelia!!!

Wow! All we can say is that we can't believe she is 1!! It seems like we waited and waited for this day to come and now here it is! I am not going to write a long monologue on how much we love her, while reminiscing about the day she came into the world (although I am in my head!) Instead, I am simply going to say how truly blessed Ben and I are to have her in our lives! Despite the ups and mostly downs of getting her here, we would not change a thing. The downs only made us more appreciative of what we have now!

Okay, I am done with the sap! Hope everyone enjoys the pictures and we can't wait to celebrate her birthday with all of you!

Love - Ben and Kori

They're Back!

Emma, Anna, and Ella made their way back to our house this past weekend! They were determined to make it back to go to Lake Michigan this summer and they succeeded! We spent the weekend playing cards, finger painting, painting bird houses, watching DVDs from the library, going to Lake Michigan, and having a wiener roast! All in all it was a good time and we can't wait for next summer!

Thanks for coming to visit!

Love - Kori, Ben, and Amelia

Roasting marshmallows over the fire!

Uncle Ben setting all the chocolate on the graham crackers.


Emma and Anna ran in to get the lamp!

I really tried to get a good picture of Emma!

I did not do so well!

Chowing down!

Anna getting her hot dog ready!

Ella was all smiles!

At the beach!

Swim Anna, swim!

Making her way back to the shade!

A really blurry picture!

Princess Ella dancing for the camera.

Amelia's new trick, this may be a good yearbook picture!

Ella gave herself and Leah a flower to wear!


And she gave Amelia one too!

Then everyone had to have flowers!

Emma and Anna pushed Amelia around the yard! I think she will love them forever now!

I Go Out Walkin'

I am sorry that it has been awhile since my last post. I thought that since I was on break from school I would have a ton of pictures to post. That is not the case! I must be too busy relaxing! We have been so grateful for the cool weather the past two weeks and have spent a lot of time out doors, swinging, playing in the pool, playing(eating) in the grass, and taking walks. Our garden is going well so far and I was surprised that Amelia ate a tomato and a green bean, right off the plant! This child will eat grass and raw green beans but not any meat we give her. She is a weird O! Anyway, I finally got a video of her walking and showing her stuff. I am so happy that she has reached this goal and even more happy that she does not get upset when she falls on her rear every few steps! She just gets back up and keeps on truckin'!

On another note, Ben got his acceptance into the Masters program at Purdue! We are very proud of him! He starts in September and has class every Saturday, so you probably will not see him very much! That is not new though!

Well, call me Kim, he he , but I have written an essay! Hope you enjoy and we will see you soon!

Love - Ben, Kori, and Amelia

Enjoying the nice weather!

Walking with Daddy! Sometimes she will hold your hand, but if you are leading her in a direction she does not want to go she pulls away.

Little Miss Independent.

Plus, notice our two toned grass. We have been watering the sections near the house so she has some soft grass to play in!

We also have to say, HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DADDY!

Ben turns, 36, tomorrow!

And yes, he has grey hairs to prove it!

Love you, Daddy!

All smiles!



I love this picture!
This is her at her best!
Look at those teeth!










Sorry for any loud noises!