June fun!

 The "Backyard Bounce" sponsored by a semi-local (Champaign) radio station! 6/25 my 8th anniversary coincidentally

 Tons of free fun for the kids!

 Matthew is going up!

 Matthew on his way down

 Topher up

 Topher down

 bounce house

 Obstacle course

 This was Ellie's favorite thing- ladder ball. She kept walking around with these on her arm like a purse

 Matthew trying a different obstacle course

 Ellie finally decided that she likes her stroller that she got for her birthday in March

This picture was taken 6/29/13

Boy stuff!

May 2013

 The boys- Uncle Todd, Grandpa, Dad, Topher and Matthew went shooting!

 They learned to wear the proper equipment

 and were taught how to handle a gun properly and that they are NOT toys!

 This is Matthew trying to get a hit during his t-ball game!

 And here is Topher taking his turn!

More pics from May

 The boys giving Ellie a wagon ride...she wasn't the biggest fan-but at this point she still hated the grass

 Such a cute little smile

 This is how I had to keep Ellie from throwing a tantrum at Topher's awards assembly- self pics!

 Topher with his other classmates

 He got 2 perfect attendance awards and a student of the Quarter award!

 This is what happened while playing with a friend outside...who had a marker

when asked why he let her do this he said he didn't...but even his toe nails and finger nails and inside his ears were "markered" pink...um, yeah, for some reason I didn't believe that he "didn't let her" color all over him. Oi! 4 year olds

Guilt

Oh yes, I feel very guilty for not having updated pictures on here for a while, especially since it seems that the others I know who were behind are also playing catch-up, but have still found the time to beat me to the punch. Not that we haven't been busy with the boys playing baseball, and my hubby playing softball every weekend and being in my 3rd trimester (and therefore Very tired with trying to keep up with said activities and 3 children who demand regular meals...and me demanding cleanliness- otherwise I am Really grumpy), but I thought that I should make an effort to get "caught up" before this next baby comes, which may be any minute now?! Time has gotten away from me and I cannot promise that I will be any better in the coming months- school starts in about a month for my preschooler and just a week and a half after that, I believe, for the the soon to be 1st grader. This will be in addition to have a newborn and a toddler-whew! It's exhausting just thinking about what's coming...ready, set, here we go on our wild ride!!!!

 A visit to Strawberry Acres to pick some fresh (and delicious I might add!) strawberries

 They (Brother and Sister Butler from our church) let the boys play with their barn cats

 This boy was in heaven! He thinks he is a cat and his sister now meows with him...

 Ellie loved the cats too...I don't know how well they liked her though

 Ellie loves freshly picked strawberries! (the store-bought, not so much...)

May 20th, 2013

Ellie's 1st birthday!

 She is a year old! I really cannot believe how quickly time has gone by!

 The stroller that Mom and Dad got for her, hoping it would encourage her to start walking- it didn't really work, but she has started to walk, but she isn't fully walking- Yet...

 She loved the sprinkles I put on her cake, she picked them off and ate them first

 She couldn't figure out how to blow out the candle

 but she was able to figure out how to eat the cupcake- she ate two of them!

 We had to get the smeared frosting pics too of course,

and as you can see she was more than happy to comply! She says "cheese" every time she hears the camera being turned on- it's so cute! (It's really hard to catch her with the smile on her face though!)

Topher's 6th Birthday!

 He wants to be a "bug scientist" (yes, he knows they are called Entomologists) so we got him a field scope so he can get a better look at the bugs he finds in the yard.

 Chocolate cupcakes with white frosting is what he requested this year

 We got him the candles that re-light, and they are kinda more like sparklers- and so he was a bit intimidated...

Ok, so this wasn't on his birthday but it was so cute! I had to share it!

Easter 2013

 Getting these Star Wars toys was pretty exciting for these boys!

 Hunting for Easter eggs

 Ellie was actually really good at picking them up and putting them in her basket, she obviously wasn't great at keeping them in her basket...but she had fun!

The Benson family all dressed up for Easter Sunday! :)