I Did Make a Promise

I did promise that if I were able to track down some more pictures from the wedding that I'd share them. And it just so happens that a good friend had taken some and she graciously shared her beautiful photos with us! I very much wanted to document the occasion that we all dressed up and looked nice. :) Doesn't happen much in this family...

The fantastically handsome jr. groomsman.
The please-just-stand-here-and-smile-for-10-seconds-before-you-wrinkle-or-ruin-your-outfits pose.
Me and my very handsome husband.
(I like to play sometimes with the color of the pictures)And my favorite
(changed to black and white for fun - although this one would be even more awesome if just the flowers were yellow!)

Craft much?

Um no. I don't craft much. I try. Sometimes. But for the most part crafts make me sweat. Googly eyes? Pipe cleaners? Not really. My friend, Jan, says everyone must own a hot glue gun to survive. I own one but I don't really use it. {forgive me Jan, I have lots of things to learn!}

Homeschooling, however, sort of drags this part out of me - kicking and screaming of course. There are projects to do with the kids (read mom does them and they criticize my technique - because they know so much about crafts...) with most of the lessons. Some I avoid like the plague but others I just plug through because I know they'll love to do it and because being crafty and creative is part of learning and I want them to enjoy school. Even if it means I'm doing tons of crafts.

So because we don't have back to school nights or bulletin boards where I can brag about our work, you get the 25 cent tour of the latest crafts at the Palmer house.

We started off with mobiles of the sun, moon and stars. This was for Kate's curriculum, but as it usually happens, the other one wanted to join in.

So here is Kate's
And here is Kale's :
note his Saturn with rings...
We did a little section on leaves with Kate and we are doing the names of Jesus with Kale and both suggested doing a "stained glass" craft. They turned out really cool. Of course the kids were very skeptical when all they saw was wax paper and crayon shavings. I got them to trust me though and they were pleased with their creations.

Kale's
Kate's
and Jack's -- couldn't leave him out! Since he's not studying anything we decided to go with a car theme since he LOVES cars.And finally we are studying American Indian history with the history of America this year and we are reading books about Native Americans. So therefore we had to build replicas of what they lived in.

Wigwams
(look out! I actually did the modge podge glue thingy for this to work!)
I'm pretty sure we're supposed to cut out a hole in the top so the smoke can get out as well as cutting out a door but ya know....I just don't want to mess with perfection....

And teepees
The one on the left (in pinks and greens) is Kate's and the one on the right (with pictures on it) is Kale's. Very true to their personalities.
So there you have it. Our craftiness thus far. I'm sure there will be more to come. I know you're biting your nails with anticipation. The tour may have cost you 25 cents but my sarcasm is free :)

Almost missed it!

The other day I was driving into town and I noticed that it's fall.

Duh.
Honestly I feel like I've just been going and going with my head down and when I finally look up to breathe...here we are - in the middle of fall - my absolute favorite season - and I almost missed it!
It was like it snuck up on me. I'd see people on facebook post about cooler weather and I'd say sure it's coming but not yet. I'd see a leaf or two turn yellow and I'd think yeah I know it's coming but not yet.

Then I saw that the colors exploded. Our trees in the front yard are turning and the huge cottonwoods (I think that's what they are) down by the Florida River near our house are orange and yellow. Yeah it's fall and I almost missed it.
I plan on dragging the family to the mountains for Fun Friday so we can see what may be left of the colors in the mountains. I'm praying we haven't missed them all. I love the warmth - that is not the sometimes overwhelming heat of summer - of the weather. I love the smell of the mountains. And I love the beauty of the colors.
I love how you can see God and learn more about Who He is through His amazing creation. Life lessons if we're willing to learn.

First lesson is that I can't just keep my head down and go and go. Look up. Look at Him. Look at others. Don't just look at myself and check things off my to-do list. Enjoy what's going on around me at the moment...or I may miss it.

Second lesson, there are seasons of tremendous heat but they give way to incredible beauty. We may feel deserted in the winter but His love covers us, nourishes us and grows us. This gives way to new life, new beauty. We go through seasons. They don't last forever. Each season has a God-given purpose. A purpose we should not miss.

He doesn't waste a single moment of our lives if we don't.

And to think I almost missed it!

{PS. The pictures were taken by Mark last fall up near Telluride. Love them!}

WWE

Wedding Week= Exhausted

I owe you lots of explanation and definitely some pictures.
I'll do my best without going overboard.

I mentioned that this past week was going to be a crazy one. It was. My wonderful friend, Jinny, got married yesterday and Mark performed the ceremony, Kale was a jr. groomsman, Kate was the flower girl, Jack was one of the (but not the official) ringbearers and I was a bridesmaid (although I'm far from maid...).

Last Sunday we finished up Jinny and Dan's couseling after we did a meet and greet thing after church. Monday we did school and Mark had a late meeting at church for Men's ministry. Tuesday was school then catching up on housework.

Wednesday we watched Norah {3} and Penny-poo {9 months} for the day. I thought it might've been a bit challenging but actually it went really well. They are both well behaved and fairly easy. The kids had so much fun with them!That afternoon Kale starting feel awful and crashed on the couch. He had a pretty high fever and he was miserable. So I decided to take him to the Dr on Thursday to get him checked out (his tonsils were huge and nasty). I figured he might have strep and wanted to get him started on antibiotics so that he could still be in the wedding!

The Dr did a throat culture and the quick test came back negative. Thankfully the Dr said that she'd still put him on antibiotics so that if the full test came back positive then he'd be ahead of the game and already feeling better, especially since he was going to be in a wedding. I was grateful for that. He doesn't get sick very often but he's pitiful when he is. And he's been talking about this wedding for the past 6 months when Jinny asked him to be in it. His heart would've been broken to miss it!

That night was Jinny's bachelorette party. Mark had to work so the kids stayed with a babysitter while I went to Gazpacho's for a fun time with the ladies. Only got one picture though, and I'm not in it :)Oh and a picture of the dessert! YUM!
Friday morning we headed to the park for a short FF. We met up with our friends, the Blegers (the Phoenix ones), and played. Well Mark and the kids did. I headed for a pedicure with the bridesmaids and the bride.

Don't ya just love how I post pictures of my feet on here? I loved the silver sparkles!
Kelly, me and Jen (the matron of honor)Didn't get a good picture of the bride and the other bridesmaid :(

Kate started feeling awful at the park (oh great). I called the Dr to see if I could get meds for her but they said no, not until they got Kale's culture back. They said a few hours wouldn't hurt....

Whatever. Mark took the kids home while I helped set up for the reception.

We had the rehearsal dinner that night. During the rehearsal Kate went downhill. She was feverish and had the chills. As soon as we were done practicing, Mark took her to urgent care. She had a temp of 103.9*. They called our pediatrician to see if Kale's culture was back and the nurse said it was negative. Hmmm....

They put her on meds anyway because her tonsils were so swollen and nasty, as well as ibuprofen. Poor thing. She was feeling better though so Mark brought her to the dinner.

Here's the bride and groom. Dan and Jinny.
We crashed after the rehearsal. Totally crashed.

Saturday Mark had men's breakfast so the kids and I got as ready as we could then headed to church. Both Kale and Kate were feeling better thanks to antibiotics and ibuprofen. I think Jack escaped all of this because he had walking pneumonia last week and was already on his own antibiotics....

We got to the church and finished up stuff. The kids played around with the props for the photo booth.
By the way, the Dr's office called me during lunch on Saturday to tell me that Kale's culture was indeed positive (this is the 2nd time this has happened to us - the quick test comes back negative and the long one comes back positive...) and he did have strep and thus Kate most likely had it as well and would I like to put her on antibiotics. Um thankyouverymuch but almost $300 later we've already done that :/ I'm glad we were able to get them feeling better, though, for what Kale called "the best day of his life so far".

Our sweet friend and babysitter, Ashley, came to the church and helped us. Things got crazier and crazier the closer we came to pictures and the ceremony. Trying to wrangle 3 kids and keep their dress and tux and fancy shirt clean all while trying to dress yourself isn't as easy as it sounds :) Mark was a wonderful helper but he also had a bunch of responsibilities to fulfill. It was seriously crazy!

But they sure looked cute!Kate, Grace, Kale, Josie, Toby, Jack and Caiden
All the kids in the wedding!Kale's tux, we discovered on Friday, wasn't here in Durango. The groomsmen had had to pick up the tuxes in Fort Collins on their way here from Nebraska. Kale's was still there! Thankfully it was overnighted, it came at 10am on Saturday and Kale got to wear it. He was so worried that it wouldn't get here. He was so excited to dress up handsome! Kate's been begging me to wear her dress for the past month or so so she was thrilled to put it on (even is wearing it to church today....). Jack didn't care but he sure loved being a big kid!

The bridesmaids (thanks to Bill for my bunny ears :P )Me and the gorgeous bride.The wedding was beautiful. The kids were amazing and adorable. The reception was a blast! Lots of dances were danced. Kale danced with his friend Anna almost the entire time. The kids got exhausted. Mark took them home. I stayed and danced and cleaned. Came home and fell, yet again, into bed.

We had some super cute photos taken at the wedding (I didn't have my phone during the reception). If I'm able to get them I will certainly post them. Especially since I don't have a single picture of my uber handsome rockstar husband :(

We're late for church this morning because Kate slept in - she desperately needed it since she woke up several times last night with night terrors from being over-exhausted. I decided to try and catch you up while I had some "free" time.

After church we have a servant leader dinner this evening. I'm hoping we can make it but I'm not sure if it's just waaay too much for Kate to handle. We'll see how the day goes.

Gotta run!

Fun on Friday - 19 & 20 (trying to catch up)

I should've known that when I started trying to post a weekly thing I'd get behind. But I guess that just tells you that life happens and you roll with it. Including Fun on Fridays.

The past couple weeks have been a bit on the insane side. I'll try and fill you in.

After our vacation to Pagosa we came home and hit the ground running. We had Dr's appointments galore! Plus we had to shop to fill up our fridge again. That may not seem like a ton but with 3 kids running errands - it feels like a lot.

Friday morning we had 2 appointments scheduled so FF wasn't quite as fun as the kids would've liked (or us for that matter). Jack and I had a WIC appointment then we headed over to the eye Dr so that Kate and Kale could have their check ups. Kate was being reevaluated after doing eye-patch therapy for 3 months and Kale was just being evaluated.

Kate went first and it was determined that her eye just isn't getting better. It is crossing even with her glasses on and she's starting to not even notice. She'll think she's seeing out of both eyes when it's clear that her bad eye isn't working at all. So the Dr suggested bifocals as our next option. The theory behind the glasses is that they will do all the work so that her eyes don't have to struggle to focus. She's actually got good vision but her eyes compete when they focus and the right one gives up and crosses. So the glasses are supposed to do the hard work for her so that the right eye doesn't give up. Since it's still crossing with her current Rx her glasses need to be stronger. But if the entire lens is as strong as she needs it then she'll lose her distance vision. Thus the bifocals.

After her appointment we went and tried on glasses since the ones she wears she got when she was 3. They've been pieced back together several times and are on their last leg. Unfortunately Kate is not thrilled about having to get new ones. Mark and I love getting new glasses, but for Kate it's a whole new sensation that she's not used to and it's no fun.

We went to try on different pairs but she couldn't stand any of them on her face for more than 3 seconds which was super frustrating. I kept trying to explain to her that they wouldn't feel this way when we got them, that we would adjust them to feel good, that this was to just see if they fit her face and looked good on her. Nope. She didn't care what I said. She just melted down.

So Mark took her and the boys (who had fun trying on glasses)
back to the car to wait while I picked out her new ones. She was just gonna get what I picked. I came back in - almost in tears - and the guy came over and asked if I was ok and if he could help me. I just told him that she doesn't handle new feelings very well and that I was gonna have to find something. He showed me a pair of the frames that have the super bendy nose piece and ear pieces and I was thrilled. They look very similar to her glasses now but they are more flexible and hopefully won't break as much.

If you've ever gotten glasses you know that picking out the frames is just the beginning. They have to measure your pupils and see where you'll be looking through the lens. But Kate wasn't up for coming back inside. The front desk lady thought she was in trouble. It's hard to explain Kate's behavior to people. I'm very thankful that she doesn't melt down in public very often. She looks like a very disrespectful kid that should be punished and honestly if the boys did what she's done they'd be punished. But it's because I know that her mind just isn't processing these things there is grace. She's not allowed to treat me terribly but instead of being punished she gets removed (if possible). To others though, she seems like a problem child, which breaks my heart.

Anyway, I had to run to the car a couple times to do the measurements and the optician even came out once and she allowed him to do a measurement. I'm not looking forward to having the glasses adjusted tomorrow since they've come in. Hopefully I can prepare Kate for what's ahead and she can do the best she can. *gulp*

Kale's eyes are totally fine. He's got great vision. Thank the Lord! Because Jack just had his 3 yr check up and the pediatrician recommended getting him checked at the eye Dr. She said it just may be the shape of his eye but he may also be beginning to show signs of having what Kate does (because it is genetic - although we can't figure out who else on either sides of our family has dealt with this). That appointment isn't till October but I'll let you know when we figure it out.

After the appointments we went to Smoothie King and got smoothies. And that was Fun (kinda) Friday :)

This past week our washing machine broke so the repair guy had to come on Friday since every other day was booked already. It turned out to be ok since neither Jack or Kate were feeling all that well. It turns out that Jack has some fluid in his lungs and the Dr was concerned about walking pneumonia. He did get a fever that night and we put him on antibiotics yesterday so hopefully he's on his way to recovering. He acts ok when he's on Tylenol. But when it wears off you can tell he's just not himself. Kate's just a bit congested. She seems better this morning.

So our Fun Friday consisted of snuggling and watching a movie. We did teach the kids Skip-bo and they had a good time. Gotta prepare them for Cooper game nights!

The whole family is in a wedding this weekend so there are several things to prepare for this week. We've been doing pre-marital counseling for this couple as well as another one so we had a couple nights each week spent doing that. We also did the River Run for Orphans - an event our church is very involved with putting on. I'll have to post a couple pictures later.

I'm home from church at least for the first service this morning. I'm hoping to get in for the 2nd service. I hate missing church. But Jack and Kate, while feeling better, can't go in to their classes and risk getting other kids sick. I can't be that mom! So they'll stay with me. They don't really enjoy it though and I didn't want to force them through 2 services. After church we have something for new people to meet the staff so we'll try and attend that. Then we have one more counseling session after that. *whew!*

Glad we're home for a bit. Even though that wasn't everything, I'm sure you're done reading my picture-lacking post. Hoping for some more time soon!

Jack's 3rd

He's not 1.

He's no longer 2.Yup, he's 3.
Three years ago - yesterday - this little angel finally came into this world and blessed our little Palmer family like crazy. Everything Jack does, including being born, is an adventure.He is curious,adventurous,fearless,funny,

rough and tough, snuggly,loving, ornery, smiley,

and just an awesome little kid. He may be the stinky little brother sometimes but other times he's the best little buddy you could have.To celebrate, we went to the park for lunch with friends
and shared Spiderman cupcakes.
He got a semi-truck from the fire-fairy. In our house we started a little thing with Kate (who also had a pacifier that she called a fire). The "fire fairy" (kinda like the tooth fairy) comes and takes all your fires and leaves you a present. Well the fire fairy left Jack this awesome semi full of monster trucks. He was super excited about it until naptime. Then he decided he didn't want cars he wanted his fire. He screamed for 2 hours. Good timing fire fairy...
He requested corn dogs for dinner. Mmmmm....Ok.

Mark and I (with some help from Mark's folks) got him a bike. It's like a Strider bike (bike with no pedals).
That's how small it is! Happy birthday little mister. We adore you!