2 Simpson Boys

Catching up...

2009-01-16T17:16:00.000-08:00

So I have been terrible about keeping our blog up to date, and I am sorry! I will try to do better. Here are some pictures to catch you up on what we have been doing!

FJ's first day of Kindergarten - Springfield Christian School

Judah's first day of Preschool - Berean Baptist Preschool

FJ GOT SAVED on AUGUST 22!! Then took the Christian Live Class at church and got baptized!! Praise the Lord!

My very favorite outing with the boys this fall - The Jack-O-Lantern Spectacular

My brother in law left for Afghanistan

And to top it all off...a very Merry Christmas!

Summer Fun

2008-08-13T08:32:00.001-07:00

Once a week, all summer, I have taken the boys on a field trip. We have had so much fun going places around our historic town! I had forgotten how much fun it was to see all the Lincoln sites through a child's eyes! Funny how we take things for granted...I remember saying things like, "Why would anyone come to Springfield, IL for vacation?" Now I remember why people would...there is so much to see and it is really interesting! I have truly enjoyed our "field trips" and wonder where we will go next time!

Memorial Day

2008-05-26T17:59:00.001-07:00

FJ and Judah at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum on Memorial Day.

FJ's Preschool Program

2008-05-18T19:56:00.001-07:00

Boys and their Toys

2008-05-17T20:27:00.000-07:00

My parents and the boys went garage sale-ing last weekend and this is what they came home with...a four wheeler...and they only paid $5 for it!! It didn't work, but with a new battery and a little of Papa's elbow grease, the boys have a new toy that they absolutely love!!!

New Hobby

2008-05-17T19:42:00.000-07:00

I have a new hobby...decorating cakes. I have even sold two so far!! It is super time consuming, but I love the feeling when I see the finished product! I can't even believe that I can do it!! So much fun!! I can't wait to try my next idea out!

Professional photo shoot

2008-04-20T14:23:00.001-07:00

Our Trip to Florida

2008-04-20T13:39:00.001-07:00

Circus and Weiner Roast

2008-02-25T08:04:00.001-08:00

At the end of October, the boys, Grammy and Papa, Trisha and Jeremy, and I went to the Ansar Shrine Circus here in town. I had never been to a circus, so I was probably more excited than they were! And it was well worth the wait! It was so much fun. Tigers, acrobats, elephants, jugglers juggling fire, clowns, etc...! WOW! It was so much fun! I would go back in a heart beat!

After the circus, we went to my aunt's house for a weiner roast. This was the first weiner roast for the boys, too. They loved it! Enjoy the silly pictures of us with the cowboy hat (courtesy of my cousin Nathan).

Catch up on blogging...

2008-02-25T06:47:00.000-08:00

Both of the boys are sick with the flu (terrible coughs, fever, runny noses, etc...) so I will try to use some of my at-home time to catch up on my blog. Hope you enjoy!

The Great Pumpkin Patch

2007-10-25T20:32:00.001-07:00

Carving our Jack-o-lanterns

2007-10-25T20:09:00.001-07:00

New Salem State Park

2007-10-25T19:59:00.001-07:00

FJ did not have school on Columbus Day, so we decided to take the boys somewhere fun. Abraham Lincoln's New Salem was the place we chose, and we had a great time!! FJ loves history, so this was the perfect place. They could run up and down the paths, look at the log cabins, and listen to us read all about the days when Abraham Lincoln lived in this village. We had a great time enjoying the sunshine and learning more about our 16th president.

Judah's Illinois Birthday

2007-10-25T19:48:00.001-07:00

Since we visited Gran and Pe-pa in Texas a week before Judah's birthday, he ended up having two parties this year. Superman in Texas and Scooby Doo in Illinois. The Superman pictures are in the Trip to Texas slide show. And here are just a few of his Scooby Doo pictures. His birthday was on Sunday, so we celebrated on Saturday night with Grammy and Papa, and Aunt Trisha and Uncle Jeremy. Then I made the Superman cookie for him to take to church on Sunday night for his class. We had a great time celebrating Judah!!

Trip to Texas

2007-10-25T19:22:00.001-07:00

Decorating for Fall

2007-10-25T18:20:00.000-07:00

The boys and I decided to decorate Mom and Dad's mailbox for fall...it seemed like a good idea at the time, and after the fact, it was. But getting the cornstalks in my little car was an ordeal. As you can tell from the pictures, Judah was not very happy that the stalks were touching him and he did not like the noise they made when we were driving down the road. He covered his ears all the way home and ended up falling asleep about half way home. Anyway, after all the trauma of the stalks and FJ falling and scraping his leg while he was helping me decorate, the final product was beautiful!! I am glad that we decided to do it! It was a lot of fun!!

Preschool

2007-10-25T18:07:00.000-07:00

FJ started preschool five days a week on September 5. He was so excited about school, but as you can see from the pictures, he was a little nervous by the time we got to school that morning.

The first month of preschool, they studied the creation story. At the end of the month, the students were asked to make "God made me special" posters and bring to share with the class. FJ and I had a good time looking through pictures and deciding what things best described FJ. I think that I have a very special boy, and I thank God that he gave me my FJ!!

Chicago - Day 3

2007-10-25T18:02:00.001-07:00

Chicago - Day 2

2007-09-04T15:54:00.001-07:00

Chicago - Day 1

2007-09-04T15:38:00.001-07:00

Illinois State Fair

2007-08-18T20:52:00.001-07:00

The Illinois State Fair has been a highlight of the summer for years! I remember coming to the fair when I was little, walking around, seeing the animals, eating the fair food, riding some rides, watching some horse shows...I loved the fair! And I still do! This time, though, it was even more fun because I got to watch my own children enjoy the fair! We started with riding the ponies, then the big slide, then we enjoyed a fried Twinkie!!! YUM! Although it doesn't go very far when you are sharing it with six people! After that we rode the Ferris Wheel and Bumper Cars. For dinner, we all (all six of us) shared Corn Dogs, a cheese burger, regular fries, and sweet potato fries. Then it was off to the FFA tent to pet some animals. When we were done there, we rode the Sky Coaster back to the gate. Before we left, we all shared an Elephant Ear, then headed home! It was a wonderful night. We had so much fun and wished we could have stayed longer!! (And tried some more fair food - like a fried Snickers bar!!!) = )

Illinois State Fair Parade

2007-08-09T20:29:00.001-07:00

New Pool

2007-08-09T19:52:00.001-07:00

Bath Time

2007-08-01T13:49:00.001-07:00

Fireworks

2007-07-31T15:31:00.000-07:00

Since it rained in Annandale on the 4th of July, we did not take the boys to the fireworks. We thought it would be too wet...they did fireworks anyway. I felt so bad that we didn't take the boys. I don't think they have ever been to fireworks, and I thought they would really enjoy them. Because of all that, we decided to buy some fireworks from one of those roadside stands and do them on our own. We did some of the fireworks the other night, but the boys didn't like them as much as I thought they would! FJ thought they were too loud and Judah didn't like them at all! He kept asking if we could go inside. Thanks, Uncle Jeremy, for your help with the fireworks! I thought it was fun! = )

Fishing at Grammy and Papa's

2007-07-22T17:56:00.000-07:00

Papa showing FJ how to cast
Judah watching his bobber
FJ's first fish
My "baby" fish
Judah got the biggest fish of the night and the liveliest! It flopped around and hit his arm; and he wasn't very happy about that, as you can tell by the picture!!

Fun at Home!!

2007-07-15T12:46:00.001-07:00

Children's Museum, Baltimore, MD

2007-07-13T15:30:00.001-07:00

Sites in D.C. proper

2007-06-26T20:06:00.001-07:00

Hiking at Fort Belvoir!

2007-06-22T19:05:00.001-07:00

Now that it is summer and F.J. is out of preschool, I have the daunting responsibility of keeping the boys busy all day, every day!!! Yikes! With two energetic boys, it seems to take a lot of planning! Today I took them to Ft. Belvoir for some hiking. F.J. had mentioned that he wanted to go back and walk by "our river", and I thought that would be fun for us to do. Now that they are older, we actually were able to walk the whole trail and had a very good time! I am sure we will be doing more hiking as I find different trails around the D.C. area!!

Outside Fun!!

2007-06-14T20:36:00.001-07:00

Memorial Day 2007

2007-05-28T13:57:00.000-07:00

My mom has started a tradition with her grandchildren of taking them to see the State Capitol when they come to visit. My boys are no exception to this tradition. Any time we are downtown, we go by the capitol building. Last week when we drove by, FJ asked if we could get out and walk around. He said he wanted to go up and see the statue of Abraham Lincoln (I was shocked that he even knew who the statue was!!). Right then, I began planning an outing, and we decided that Memorial Day would be the day!

It was a perfect day to be downtown...it was really quiet, not too many people around! And we had a lot of fun!! The boys, especially FJ, really enjoyed walking around "Grammy's Capitol" and seeing all the statues. He asked us if Abraham Lincoln worked at the Capitol and if he lived there!! We told him that Lincoln's home was in Springfield, too; but that will be another outing, for another day!!! After walking around outside, we took them inside for a few minutes. We didn't think that they were old enough to appreciate a tour, but they enjoyed just looking up into the Rotunda. All in all, it was a great Memorial Day outing! Thanks, Grammy for the great tradition of going to see "Your Capitol!"

A New Member of the Family

2007-05-14T18:13:00.000-07:00

We have a new family member...his name is Franklin and he is a Red Ear Slider Turtle. He is tiny, as you can see in the pictures, and the boys love him!! Franklin even had to go to church with us yesterday because FJ said he needed to hear the Bible stories = )! He is really easy to take care of...my kind of pet!! He needs sunlight and some baby turtle food, but other than that, we don't have to do anything for him.

The boys found him at my aunt's house in the window well, and my cousin Denise helped them get him out with a net. The people at the pet store said he is a baby and one man told us that he wished he could find a turtle like Franklin for his son. He said Franklin is a perfect pet! As for me, I don't mind him as long as I don't have to touch him!!!!! I think he is cute at a distance! All in all, if we have to have a pet, I think Franklin is great!

Random Pictures

2007-04-23T19:57:00.000-07:00

These pictures are not the best because they are from my cell phone, but they are so funny that I had to put them on here! My boys make me smile!! They keep me busy, but I love every minute of it!!

Kite Flying

2007-04-23T18:28:00.000-07:00

What a great day for flying a kite!! Papa bought FJ a kite for his birthday, but kept it until the weather was nice kite flying weather and Friday was finally a perfect day for flying a kite!! The boys and Papa had a lot of fun getting it going...only problem is that the park is down in a gulley and the wind does not blow as well down there. It would fly for a few minutes and then take a sudden nose dive when the wind died off. At any rate, it was fun for the boys and for me to see how excited they got when they saw their kite flying!

Well, you only turn 30 once...

2007-04-15T20:52:00.000-07:00

Well, like I said, you only turn 30 once; and I decided that I wanted to have a big celebration. I was NOT looking forward to this birthday, so I tried to plan something that would give me good memories of my 30th birthday. And it worked!! My Dad is working in Chicago temporarily and travels home every weekend, but this weekend we rode the train up to stay with him for a few days. We had a great time...Rainforest Cafe, swimming at the hotel, Shedd Aquarium, Navy Pier, Chicago Children's museum, Chipotle, Brookfield Zoo...we hit all the big children's attractions!! I had so much fun watching the boys enjoy all the sites and seeing their reactions to all the new experiences. The best part...well, I think I would have to say that the whole weekend was the best part!! It was amazing!

Easter

2007-04-08T20:52:00.000-07:00

What a wonderful time Easter is for Christians! A wonderful day set aside to celebrate Jesus rising from the dead and the new and eternal life we have through His sacrifice on the cross!

We had a great Easter! We enjoyed every minute of the day...from the Easter basket and M&M hunt first thing this morning, the Easter Cantata at church, lunch with the family, and finishing the day off with a Praise and Worship service at church tonight! It was a wonderful day!! Hope you enjoy all the pictures!

My Baby Sister is Getting Married!!

2007-04-08T20:10:00.000-07:00

Coloring Easter Eggs

2007-04-05T12:34:00.000-07:00

Outside Fun

2007-03-30T17:07:00.000-07:00

It has finally gotten warm enough to take the boys outside to play, and they love it!! It is so nice to be able to be out enjoying the sunshine - we stay out as long as we can and even eat our lunch outside when it is possible! I am thankful for the spring weather and the chance we have to be together every day!!

They both love to ride their bicycles and chase each other all around! In the first picture, FJ told Judah that he shot him so to fall down; and of course Judah did exactly what his big brother told him to do!! And it is so true that boys make guns out of everything!! They just love to play like they are policemen or soldiers - it is a natural thing!! And it is fun to see them use their imaginations!

FJ's fourth year

2007-03-27T08:07:00.000-07:00

Today, I took FJ out and took pictures of him for his birthday. He was more cooperative than I thought he would be and I got some great pictures. I put one funny picture on here, too, just to show everyone what a photo shoot with FJ is like! He makes me laugh!! He is a joy, and I think that he is a very handsome young man! I might be a little biased, though!! = )

FJ's 4th Birthday

2007-03-23T10:53:00.000-07:00

On Monday, March 19, FJ turned four years old! To me, it doesn't even seem possible that my baby boy is four! We had a great day! He woke up to a bedroom floor full of balloons, and the day just got better and better! Jay's mom and sister were able to join us for the big day (even though Gran was sick on Monday and couldn't come to the party), and we had a great time! FJ asked for a Spiderman birthday, and as you can see, he loved it! Spiderman balloons, cake, new pajamas, and the list goes on! He just kept saying, "Mommy, Thank you for my birthday!" And of course that made me cry! He is a joy and makes us smile and laugh all the time! We had a great time together as a family! Judah got in on the fun, too; and he probably made us laugh more than ever before! At one point he put his hands on Jay's face and said (in a very low, grovelly voice) "Look at me when I'm talking to you, boy!" We all laughed so hard on that one! Then on Tuesday, we took the boys to Kicks - easiest way to describe it is a buffet/arcade place like Chuck E Cheese except for adults. We had a blast!! We even got to go on the go carts - Daddy and FJ raced Mommy and Judah. Mommy and Judah were winning until the last lap when Daddy and FJ bumped into us and pushed us out of the way! Oh well! They got the ribbon for winning, but we all have the memories of the fun that we had racing! (We were the only ones on the track, so it made it even more fun!!!) All in all, we had a great time celebrating FJ's birthday, and we thank the Lord for a wonderful little boy to celebrate!

Day after Christmas

2006-12-26T17:12:00.000-08:00

What an exciting time Christmas is and this year was no exception at our house! We had a house full of guests-my sister, Trisha, came home from college on December 12, her boyfriend, Jeremy, came home from Basic Training on Dec. 20, Jay's mom, Ann, came on Dec. 21, my sister, Tanya, and her family came on Dec. 22, and Jay came on Dec. 24. Not to mention that my Uncle and his family came to have dinner and presents with us on Christmas Eve, too!! We had a good time, even though things were kind of different this year - my grandpa is still in an acute care hospital recovering from West Nile Virus. We usually go to my grandma and grandpa's house for Christmas Eve and have ever since I can remember, but we obviously could not do that this year. But none the less, we had fun being together.

A few weeks ago, we took the boys to a church here in town that does a "Journey to Bethlehem". We saw Roman soldiers, talked to Zechariah and Elizabeth, went through a marketplace, and went to a stable and saw Mary, Joseph, and the baby Jesus. What a wonderful way to be reminded of the real meaning of Christmas, to see what it might have been like when Jesus was born into our world, and to see the wonder in F.J. and Judah's eyes as we took our "Journey to Bethlehem".

F.J. and Judah had a good Christmas and were a lot of fun to watch this year. They are old enough now to understand what is going on and get excited about the presents, stockings, Christmas goodies, etc... What fun to see the wonder in their eyes and to hear the excitement in their voices as they unwrapped their presents. Enjoy the pictures and keep in touch when you can!!