May God Richly Bless You Every Day

Happy New Year!

2011-01-02T23:52:00.001-08:00

Here's hoping and praying that the year 2011 brings all of you great happiness and may you have a safe and healthy new year! Love, the Kells

Happy Fall

2010-10-26T19:48:00.001-07:00

Here are two reasons why I am happy all year long! I love this time of year and so do my boys! Happy Fall everyone!

Dog-gone cute!

2010-08-10T19:36:00.000-07:00

So, I am generally not a canine lover at all, being mostly a lover of felines. But, my cousin came to visit and brought her 7 mo old Chihuahua with her, and boy was he a treat! The kids fell instantly in love with Bentley. They were so very sad to see him leave.

Once Upon A Time

2010-05-17T18:36:00.001-07:00

In a land far away...two people fell in love

and got married on this fine day in May, 1997!

Park it...and play! That's what I say...

2010-03-06T22:32:00.001-08:00

Grandpa Jud came for a visit and to also watch Collin play his last game of basketball. The boys talked him in to taking them to the park. This is Darin and his dad's trucks side by side in the parking lot at the park. I thought it was funny, so I had to take a picture :) I was so excited that the weather was nice and that I got to try out my new camera lens on the boys! Yeah! And, I also realize I haven't blogged in awhile, so hopefully this makes up for it :)

Collin loves to fly in the air!

Austin used to be scared to go down slides...but not anymore!

Collin...hanging on for dear life :)

My sweet Collin!

Sweet lil' Austie...kind of giving me an Air Jordan kind of look!

Apparently the slide had a lot of static electricity :)

Love this photo of my lil' man!

I love this photo because it cracks me up that Austin is trying to run ahead of the gang!

Happy Birthday Austin!

2010-01-07T07:00:00.000-08:00

My little miracle child is turning 3 years old today! I can hardly believe it! He has been such a joy to us and he has made our family complete! He is Mr. Personality for sure. He is a softie and loves to cuddle and caress my arm at the same time. He is just a good boy. I have been blessed with the title of his mom! Love you so much Austin Lee Kell!

Austin's new word

2009-12-28T21:59:00.000-08:00

So, last night, I was bringing Austin's new pj's down for him to wear. They were Batman themed. He says "is that batman, mommy?" I said, why yes it is. How did you know that? He said "cause I'm SMART"! Love it! Just had to share that! It was too good to keep to myself!

Merry Christmas time!

2009-12-19T15:09:00.001-08:00

Lovin' these two lovebirds!

2009-11-29T09:03:00.000-08:00

I took this picture of my grandparents on Thanksgiving day! I just love them and thought I would post this picture because they are just so sweet together! They are my only grandparents left and I treasure every minute I get to spend down at their house just chatting and laughing away! Love you gramp and gram!

A Super Grand Fall Day!

2009-10-24T20:09:00.000-07:00

The boys were excited to get out of the house today! We started in the backyard for some super cute fall photos in the leaves! (Thanks Krista for inspiring me to take them.) Fortunately our neighbor has a tree that drops it's fall leaves in our backyard! Yeah for us that we didn't have to drive anywhere to find pretty leaves! Then, we headed off to the Pumpkin Patch in search of the right pumpkins for each of the boys! Darin had to work, so it was just us 3! It turned out to be a great day and warm too!

Collin turns 9!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2009-09-21T20:52:00.001-07:00

Well, my baby is growing up! He is officially 9 years old and in the 4th grade this year! Yikes! It's hard to believe. He's gotten so tall over the summer and he's just a little man now...no baby left in him :( Happy Birthday my sweet Collin!!! I love you...

Collin enters the 4th grade

2009-09-01T20:32:00.001-07:00

Collin started the 4th grade yesterday and seems to love it! Here's to a great school year!

Crater Lake baby!

2009-08-27T10:41:00.000-07:00

So, I had to be convinced that I wanted to travel ANOTHER 90 miles to go visit a national park. I wasn't thrilled to be in the vehicle for that long again, but my dad and other siblings and their family wanted to go. Plus, Darin thought we should go as well. So, with that said, we went, and had a great time! The weather was perfect! Glad I went afterall...

Some really cute kids!

2009-08-01T11:42:00.001-07:00

My precious niece Grace, 5 years old!

Princess Pey Pey ~ almost one years old!

My son Collin with my sweet niece Maddie and adorable nephew Logan

My cute 1 yr old niece Annika

Some precious boy cousins...Logan, Austin and Collin!

My handsome nephew Reece!

Okay...so the above pics are of my children and brother's children (but most of you know who these kids are!). I was told by Krista that she misses me blogging...so just wanted to post some pics of these pretty cute Motsinger grandchildren. Can they get any cuter? I mean, really???

Reunited at last!

2009-07-08T23:04:00.000-07:00

Well, my dear sweet handsome grandpa Charlie went home to be with the Lord tonight. I am saddened by his departure from this earth, but happy to know he is spending eternity in Heaven with our Heavenly Father as well as Grandma Rose! We will surely miss you grandpa. I love you lots!

And the Rockets Red Glare!!!

2009-07-04T23:05:00.001-07:00

Happy 4th of July everyone! We had so much fun today! What a busy day it was. We spent it in Tillamook this year. We started with taco salad, played a mean game of U-N-O and ended with the awesome fireworks that my brother Michael did for us! I hope you all had a wonderful day with friends and family! God Bless the USA!

It's "Too-th irty". Do you know where your child is?

2009-06-18T20:58:00.000-07:00

At the dentist office, that's where!!! Austin had his first dentist visit today. He loved, loved, loved it! He was timid at first, but loosened up and loved it! When the dentist was done, he got to sit up in the chair. The dental assistant gave him a bag of dental goodies. Austin sat there holding the bag and said "I'm done". It was so cute!

Happy Mother's Day

2009-05-10T21:08:00.000-07:00

Happy Mother's Day to all my beautiful friends that are Mothers!

Beautiful Weekend!

2009-04-20T06:14:00.001-07:00

We had gorgeous weather ALL weekend and I loved it! Thankful the rain decided to go away for awhile!!! Darin was off yesterday and I actually got a picture of him with Austin. I also got a picture of Collin riding his dirt bike and a sweet one of Austie just smiling! Enjoy!

Happy Easter! He is Risen!

2009-04-12T12:33:00.001-07:00

Today we can celebrate Easter because Jesus died on the Cross to take away our sins, and then rose again, so that we can have eternal life with him some day in Heaven. Today in kids church, we had a Bible lesson, and we included different colors of jelly beans. Black represents our sins, Red is the blood that Jesus shed on the cross for those sins, White is that we are white as snow (pure), Green is for our growth in Christ, Blue is for Baptism and Yellow is for Heaven. It is just a good reminder to us all that as we grow, we experience different colored "jelly beans" in our life! I hope and pray that we are all in the green/blue stage. I just think, that as the grass grows, so should our Faith in Christ Jesus who died on the cross to take away our sins!

Happy Birthday Shawnia

2009-04-04T21:26:00.001-07:00

I just wanted to wish my friend Shawnia a happy Birthday today! She is fortunate enough to be celebrating it in Maui. She got to snorkel today. Love you girl!

Beautiful Day for the Park

2009-04-04T21:18:00.000-07:00

Austin got to play at the park today. It was such good weather, I couldn't believe it! Collin was in Eugene today for his friend's birthday, so it was just me and Austin and my girlfriend Heather and her son Noah. We had a blast! Thank goodness for springtime!!! I can't wait for summer weather.

Biggest Loser

2009-03-14T11:48:00.000-07:00

So, I was gonna post some pics of me. I even had Collin just take some. But, I don't seem to like any of them, so this is going to be a post without pics. I know, not like me, huh? Well, my weight loss journey continues. Since I wrote a blog about it a month ago, I have since lost 10 more lbs, and a total of 8.5 inches. So, that brings my total weight loss to 15.6 lbs as of this morning. I am in that in-between clothes size again. That is the part that sucks. My "fat" clothes are hanging off of me, but I'm not "skinny" enough yet to wear the next size down. Ugh...

My workouts have been tough, but worth it! I dred them every morning, but struggle through them, and am glad that I forced myself to workout when the workout is over! So, maybe in another month, I might like how I look and post some pics of the NEW me! If you could be so lucky! :)

Building a Fort

2009-03-07T14:42:00.000-08:00

So, Collin had a friend over a few days ago, and they decided to build a fort. I think it took like 10 blankets and 5 or so chairs. Collin and his friend had snacks and drinks in the fort :) Austin even snuck in a time or two. Collin didn't want us to tear the fort down, so I allowed it to stay up for the whole day and night. When it was bedtime, I couldn't find Collin. I asked Darin where he was and he told me "in the fort". I couldn't believe it! Collin actually went to sleep in the fort! So, as usual, here I am posting pics from that!

For The Love of Papa!

2009-02-23T05:47:00.000-08:00

My parents visited this weekend. When it comes to my dad, Austin won't leave his side. He loves his papa so much! It's adorable how much he admires him. He thinks his Papa is his best friend.

Boot Camp anyone?

2009-02-08T07:33:00.000-08:00

Well, I've decided to just dive in when it comes to working out and losing weight. Between being a mother and wife, taking care of the kids, working and house work, the only time I have found that works best for me to work out, is at 6am in the morning before both kids are up! Darin does his exercise routine first, then it's my turn! He told me to give his workout video a try. I am on day 4 and it is literally kickin my butt! But, in a good way! i have also done my WII fit for the past month as well. So, I'm getting a double workout!! yeah! Here's to 90 LBS in '09! No, just kidding! i would look anorexic if I lost that much. But, 60 lbs would be just fine! i have already lost 6 of those 60! So, wish me luck, cause if i didn't have Darin encouraging me, I probably wouldn't have worked out this morning.

My babies are growing up!

2009-02-01T12:37:00.001-08:00

These pictures I took yesterday of my buddy, my son! He just a joy and a delight to have! I just couldn't resist taking pictures of him.

By about picture 30, he was ready to be done with the photo session!!!

Brothers finally get to sit up at the table together and have dinner!

Austin has become quite the big boy. He wants to sit with us up on the high stool and he does pretty good. He even wants to drink out of a big boy cup, not the sippy kind.

This is Austin saying "cheese". It was so funny. He held his mouth in a smile with food in it and all. He kept saying cheese, cheese, cheese, until I took the picture! Guess that's what happens when you are in a house where the camera is always in use! :)

Once Upon a Time...

2009-01-26T19:01:00.000-08:00

I'm having a nostalgic moment. I had the first grandson on my side of the family, and after Collin started to outgrow his clothes, I started passing them down to my nephew Reece. It has since traveled down the cousin chain and went to Logan. Now, it has cycled back to ME!!! Weird how that worked! Plus, the shirt is in awesome condition. I just had to take a picture of Austin in one of Collin's shirts that he wore when he was 2! Oh so long ago! I'll try and make a poem about it..we'll see how I do! :)

Once upon a time

in a land far away

lived a boy and his clothes

on a fine and grand day.

He grew and he grew

and his clothes didn't fit, you see

He had tons of clothes

to pass down to cousin Reecie.

When Reecie got older

he got taller and taller

he passed the clothes on to Logan

whose dad was a basketballer!

Then one fine day in the fall

Logan had to give the clothes to Austin Lee

But hey, after all,

that is where they originated from, you see!

Happy Birthday My Little 2 Year Old

2009-01-07T19:05:00.001-08:00

Our little baby is 2 today! I am sad, but glad at the same time. No more sleepless nights, no more bottles, no more shots for awhile, I get a little more free time, etc... Austin has become quite the big boy these days. He is talking so much. It is just adorable to hear new words come out of his sweet lips! Happy Birthday baby boy. We love you!

Typical Tillamook Flooding

2009-01-04T11:24:00.000-08:00

We were in Tillamook during Christmas break, and it decided to give us a mild flood. It didn't last long, but it stormed all day long and didn't let up for a minute. I think it finally stopped some time around 1 AM. Roads were closing, including the one that we have to drive on to get to my parents house. Fortunately on Friday when we woke up, the rain never continued and the water soon started to receed, contrary to the weatherman telling us otherwise! He said it wasn't going to let up until Saturday morning. Glad they were wrong. Collin was really scared about the flooding going on. He had never experienced one like I have before. He said to me as we were going to bed "Mom, what if it floods in the house?" I assured him that has never happened before. I reminded him of God's promise to us. I asked him if he remembered what the rainbow symbolized. He said yes. No worries after that! Whew! Of course, he had to go play in the water on Friday after the storm quit! Here are a few pictures from that!

Merry Christmas

2008-12-25T22:55:00.001-08:00

Merry Christmas from the Kell house to yours. We truly hope it was a very blessed day with family! Love and hugs!

We went to the Prom

2008-12-17T23:05:00.000-08:00

Friday night was my work Christmas party. I was one of the people in charge. I ended up being the emcee for the night. It was a total blast! We set up a photo booth in the back. It felt a lot like prom. It was kind of cool, cause I wasn't in school with Darin, so we never got to go to a dance together and get our pictures taken...so here it is! It was like we went to prom! hehe...just wanted to post a picture for you all to enjoy (or laugh at).

Searching for the perfect tree

2008-12-17T22:58:00.000-08:00

Just a few pictures from our tree hunting a few weeks ago. We ended with a beautiful tree!

Here Comes Santa Claus...

2008-12-06T23:01:00.000-08:00

My boys...

My cute little Niece Peyton all happy today!

My nephew Logan aka Santa

Frosty was tall!

The boys got to see Santa today at the Teddy Bear picnic. My brother Jason and family are visiting this weekend, and got to go with us! Austin was such a good boy. He didn't even get scared, and Collin was good as usual. We also got to see Frosty the Snowman and Santa Paws at Petco! It was a very fun-filled day. We topped it off with a drive thru the Festival of Lights! Poor Austin missed it all...he fell asleep just minutes before we got there. Just wanted to share a few with all of you...

Thanksgiving 2008

2008-11-29T23:14:00.000-08:00

Aren't we cute, even after almost 12 years???

Precious lil' Austin

The Kell girls...me, mamasita Chris and my sister-in-law Elaine

My handsome son Collin

The Kell guys...

The Kell cousins...Caleb, Collin, Austin and Justin

Well, one of my favorite holidays has come and went already! Man, only 26 days 'til Christmas now! We had a great Thanksgiving this year. We spent it with the Kell side. There was all 10 of us present and accounted for. I got everyone to pose for updated photos. (they were good sports). Just posting a few...since it's been a few weeks since I've done any updates. I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving with their families this year. God is good!

Austin loves to read!

2008-11-11T23:01:00.000-08:00

So, a few days ago, I was cleaning the kitchen, and I realized it was awful quiet in the house. I thought to myself "hmmm...wonder what Austin is up to? In to? Or whatever! I decided to take a look, and when I did...this is what I found! It was so cute! He loves his lion chair and he loves to get books out and look at the pictures. He really is taking after his brother when it comes to Super Heroes. He gets super excited when he sees Spiderman. I think Austin got a little confused last night, cause Collin dressed up in his Spiderman costume and moved all over the house in it. Austin just stared at him and make "uh" noises. He was excited, but I think he couldn't figure out how Spiderman got in the house, and wasn't on TV or in a book. Too cute!

Halloween 2008

2008-11-02T16:19:00.001-08:00

Just a few pics from Halloween. We had a great time. Darin got to go with us as well. We ended the night at our church for the Harvest Party. All in all...a great night! And, it didn't rain on us! Yeah!

Pumpkin Carving 2008

2008-11-02T16:05:00.001-08:00

Pumpkin Carving this year was way different from even last year. This was the first year that Collin didn't grossed out when he stuck his hand inside the pumpkin. He usually would go "oooh! Gross" and make a weird disgusted face. This year he was really into it and wanted to get all the seeds out without help. Austin just dove right in. He has no fears at all! He was amazing.

The Pumpkin Patch!

2008-10-25T19:05:00.000-07:00

Today was a fabulous day! The weather was perfect for picking out pumpkins. I am so glad we went today! Austin was unsure for awhile about whether he wanted down or not, but in the end, he walked around and even sat on some pumpkins! Collin enjoyed the corn maize as always!

The colors of Fall...

2008-10-21T20:32:00.000-07:00

Well, fall is such a beautiful time of year. The colors change, the leaves fall and the days are shorter. I don't really like that the day doesn't have as much daylight as the summer months, but I can deal with it! I was fortunate to get a few cute pics of the boys in the leaves at the park in Tillamook a few days ago before it got too dark. Check them out!

From Generation to Generation

2008-10-10T21:37:00.000-07:00

This is a 4-generation picture taken by Collin. I think he did pretty good considering he is only 8!!! This is of my mom, my mom's parents (grandpa and grandma to me), Austin and, of course, me. This was taken September 27, 2008. I came to realize a long time ago that you have to cherish every moment you get with your loved ones, cause you just never know how much time we have left on this earth.

Collin turns 8 years old today!

2008-09-19T19:05:00.000-07:00

My other baby turns 8 years old today! He has grown up so much in the past few years! I can't believe how mature he looks in these pictures. (not to mention handsome). He has his birthday party tomorrow, and he is way excited about that! He has also been dealing with the hives. For whatever reason, he got in touch with something that didn't agree with him, and he has the darn hives! They make him look like he has the measles, but he has dealt with them well. Although, they make him itch something awful! Happy Birthday, my little 8 year old! I love you so much!

Austin gets his first owie!

2008-09-19T19:02:00.000-07:00

Well, Austin officially got his first (but mild) goose egg! He decided to follow Daddy down the stairs a few days ago, and went from the first step to the last step in a matter of seconds! He is a tough little cookie, that's for sure! He cried for a bit, then got right back up and started playing! What a trooper!

My baby is growing up

2008-09-11T21:54:00.001-07:00

Well, you all know Austin is my last baby, and he is getting so big! Lately, he has decided that he would prefer to sit on daddy's lap in the evenings now. That makes me sad. He used to just plop right up in my lap every night without hesitation. Now, if dad is anywhere in the house, there he is...at his heel! I can be holding him, talking to him, feeding him, whatever, and when Darin comes home from work, as soon as Austin hears the front door open and close, he practically leaps out of my arms to go see daddy!

I was beginning to think my son didn't love me anymore (I know, I shouldn't be jealous, hehe) but then I figured out that it has to be the recliner. If I sit in the recliner and Darin is on the couch, then Austin is my buddy all over again. My little boy is crazy I say! He can't make up his mind. But, at least I know he still loves his mommy. His 40 kisses a day tell me so! :)

Here's to you, my little 20 month old! I love you with all my heart!

We gave our son a new used car

2008-09-09T21:19:00.000-07:00

That title probably sparked your interest, didn't it? Well, when your husband is in the car business, we can get good deals on any vehicle we want, so we did give our son a new car and it wasn't very expensive either. It's a car.................bed, that is! hehe...

He started to calm down here just a little...

...Now he's pretty mad!

Austin finally relaxing in his new bed!

Tonight we decided to put Austin in his toddler bed for the first time. He cried at first, not wanting to get on it, or in it, for that matter! But, once he settled down, he didn't make a peep and I think he fell asleep almost instantly! I wasn't able to capture very many cute pictures because he wasn't very happy with me, as you can see by the above picture. I hope the night goes smoothly for us...

Collin starts 3rd grade today

2008-09-02T20:57:00.000-07:00

My little boy is growing up way too fast. He just entered into 3rd grade today! I can't believe it! He looks so mature in these two pictures I am including along with this post. Normally Darin and I both take him in to class on the first day of school, but I decided not to. I made sure I took the pictures, and then I let Darin take him to school. Darin told me as he started to pull the jeep over and park, Collin asked him why he was pulling over? He wondered why Darin wasn't dropping him off like he did all last year? Darin said it was because he normally goes in with him the first day of school. Collin said that wasn't necessary and that he was okay with going in by himself this time. Wow! If that doesn't make me sad...my baby is growing up! Yikes!

I just wanted to share the memory of Collin's school days! I think what also made the day easy was that he has the same teacher as he did last year and two of his good buddies are in his class again. Whew! Thank goodness for good friends!

Here's to a great school year for all of us!!!

Fair Time!!!

2008-08-17T22:35:00.001-07:00

We went to the Douglas County Fair on August 7th and the Tillamook Fair on August 9th. I am slow posting these pictures because I knew it would take awhile, and I'm sorry there are quite a few, but this really should have been two posts, but I've combined them into one. We had awesome weather for our fair, it reached 86 degress, I think. You may say that's hot, and yes, I agree. But, when you consider the first year we moved here, the weather at the fair was over 100, I can take 86 any day!

We encountered crazy weather when we came to the Tillamook Fair. It was warm, breezy and it even rained and then cleared off. Weird, but hey, that's Tillamook for ya!

We had so much fun this year at the fair. Austin was just the right age to enjoy most of it. Unfortunately, though, he wasn't quite tall enough or old enough to ride any of the rides. Next year for sure! Collin rode about 6 rides at our fair, and Darin rode one of them with him, as you'll see when you scroll down the pictures below.

Darin and Austie enjoying some sun at our fair this year! Austin is just all smiles and such a little Darin :)

My boys got in a few games while we were there. Check out the ring in mid air! Cool, huh?

Darin was forced by Collin to ride the Ali Baba ride this year. There wasn't a huge crowd when we were there, so they were fortunate to have the whole ride to themselves!

Austin put on his walking shoes and never looked back!

Collin got to ride solo on the roller coaster!

This is Collin after jumping into the ball pit. (notice his toothless smile)

Now the Tillamook Co. Fair Pictures:

I ran into a dear old friend of mine at the fair. I hadn't seen Crystal since I was pregnant with Austin. I just love her...

We got the opportunity to hang out with the McConkey's at the Tillamook Fair this year! Yeah for us! Collin had a blast, because he had ride buddies! This is Wendy with little Paige (she is 7 weeks older than Austin).

My dad got off work and headed to the fair to hang out with the family! Course...all his grandsons just adore their papa!

This is one of my favorite people in the whole world - my super awesome father-in-law Jud! This is him doing what he loves best (besides hanging with his family). I have to admit...I fell in love with the Kettle Korn this year. I guess taste buds can change!

Collin loved going down the slide.

Collin with his long time buddy Kyle McConkey (in the middle) and his younger brother Justin.

Me and my little buddy!

Collin, Kyle and Justin riding whatever this ride is called. I can't remember...but they had a great time I know that much!

Austin just loved playing with the balloons. I loved seeing his facial expressions!

Happy Birthday Kathie!

2008-08-07T08:08:00.000-07:00

This is my son Austin's babysitter (AKA the best babysitter in the world!) She actually used to babysit Collin when he was littler too. Her birthday was actually yesterday, but I was having a hard time finding this photo and I just found it!!! Yeah!!! This is the picture I took of her last year with the cake I made her. For those of you that don't know her, she is a total Americana Fanatic!!! She doesn't own a piece of flatware, dinner plates, cups, etc...if they aren't red, white or blue! And, if you look in her cupboards, her plates can't touch each other if they are the same color. So, you will actually see her plates stacked in red, white and blue order. She's so funny!

She would probably just die if she knew I posted this (but I did because she probably won't see this post). She is so funny, not liking her picture taken at all, but she was kind enough to let me snap this one! So, this is for you Kathie! Thanks for being my friend, a great babysitter and just an overall great person! We love you very much!

Church in the Park, Picnic and Super Water Slide!

2008-08-03T22:48:00.000-07:00

Today we had church and a picnic in the park. It was such a beautiful day for it too! Not too hot, not too cold. There was a cool breeze, which was really nice, considering this time of year, we usually see the weather close to 100 degrees from here til September! It only got to about 84 degrees today. it was such a beautiful thing...hearing religious music echo across the park through the speakers. When I closed my eyes and sang, it was almost chilling, and I mean that in a good way.

Collin got to play in the blown up water slide. He had a blast as always! And, Austin got to show off his walking skills. During church, he walked around in circles, going to different people and saying "uh". He's quite the charmer...

Here are just a few pictures from today!

I love this picture of Austin. The facial expression is priceless, and the wind is blowing what curls he has! And, notice the pants - they are actually shorts believe it or not!

Collin the Dare-Devil!

This was kind of a funny picture. I took it by holding the camera in front of us, that is why it is kind of a funny picture! Collin isn't in this because he was in line for the water slide.

Look out below!

And, we have Austin being super cute again. He just thought it was the coolest that he got to walk around as much as he did today.

Special Visitors

2008-07-31T11:42:00.000-07:00

My grandpa Wendell with his 35th Great-Grandchild, Austin!

My grandma Vera just turned 80 in February! She looks fabulous! And, my boys love her!

We got the pleasure of having my grandparents drop by for a visit. They stayed the night and left this morning for home. They are anxious to get home, since they have been in Georgia for the past 5 1/2 months. I have missed them so much and as always I love when they visit!!!

Brotherly Love

2008-07-27T22:23:00.000-07:00

So, tonight, Collin took his spiderman bean bag chair out, got a blanket and cuddled up in the chair. Austin, got off my lap, went down to his brother and started having a conversation with him that only he could understand. It was so precious. Then, he laid on Collin and didn't get up. Again...precious. So, me being me, went and got the camera to capture the rare moment where these two brothers are in one place and calm! Look at my lil' Darin on the left and my lil' Laurie on the right :)

Austin is 18 months old!

2008-07-26T16:54:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures of our littlest guy. He just had a bath and was all clean, plus I spiked his hair all cute with lotion, so I had to take some pictures! He turned 18 months old on the 7th of July! He's a walking fool! He doesn't look back! I think he forgot that he used to crawl :)

Phillips/Blum Family Reunion July 2008

2008-07-20T18:46:00.001-07:00

Well, this year was our family reunion. I look forward to the reunions, as it is a chance to see all my relatives far and near. When we all get together, it is like the years never passed by. It is truly awesome how we all remember each other, and amazing at how many babies had been born since the last reunion. I believe we introduced 5 new babies to the family this year. But, there were a few more that were not able to make it.

This is me up front with Austin introducing him to the family for the first time. He stole the stage! :)

This is my mom's brother John and his wife Chris with my super hot cousin Jonetta! yes she's single, but not looking :)

I am seated at the table with my dad (holding my niece Anni), brother Ryan and his wife Morgan, cousin Dustin, my brother Jason and his wife Krista (8 months prego with my niece).

My brother Michael was able to make it and he brought two of his three kids: Grace (age 4) and Reece (age 5). Aren't they cute?

We had a bbq on Friday night and Aunt Diana came. I was so glad to see her, even though I know it is so hard for her to be around when it is a "family" reunion. She comes when she feels up to it and I am glad she did this time around!!! Plus, Austin just loves her too...

This is my mom with two of her three sisters, Susan and Barbara.

My cousins Andrew and Dustin and my brother Ryan singing an FFH song "Like You", I can't remember the exact title, but it's something to that effect :) They do superb every time they sing! We all look forward to this trio every reunion!

Collin and Austin with cousin Logan and grandpa Mike. They all wanted to play the piano. It was pretty cute!

The reunion was bitter sweet this year, as my uncle Larry passed away on the last day of our reunion. I told my mom that at least family was all together when we heard the news. It has been a long week since he passed away. He has had the official "church" service held by the Chaplains on Saturday. Now, in October he gets laid to rest in the Arlington National Cemetery. What an honor that will be...and as of now, all of my mom's siblings, parents and her are all going to that service. It should be a "wow" experience, as far as funerals go. I hope that this will be a positive experience in their grieving process.

Even though it was a hard reunion this year, we did have some good times, and I hope the pictures show that. May God bless you all! Keep loved one close and tell them you love them all the time! You never know if it will be your last visit with them.

In Loving Memory...

2008-07-13T20:57:00.001-07:00

US Army Chaplain Larry Blum

June 9, 1951-July 13, 2008

It is with great sadness that I report that my uncle Larry has passed away this morning, but it is with great joy that he has gone home to be with Jesus! Praise God he is not in pain anymore and that we/I can rejoice in knowing that I will get to see him again someday.

I love you Uncle Larry and miss you already!

Fourth of July Festivities 2008

2008-07-05T23:38:00.001-07:00

We had a bbq at my brother Michael's house. it was so fun! We had a great time. The weather was nice, so the kids got to play outside! We finished the day with my brother Jason and Collin giving us a fireworks show! Fun was had by all. (of course, I had my camera out-hehe)

Austin playing on the kiddy slide. He never wanted to slide down, cause I think it's too scary for him, but he loved playing on it!

Here are the three oldest cousins - Collin with Madison and Reece...eating the great grub Michael made for us!

Well, once again...we got an updated cousins picture today, since Annika joined the group 5 weeks ago! What fun...and all the kids for the most part cooperated! Whew!

Madison is such a little mommy...she loves her cousins, and she loves holding babies!

Me and my boys.

My new niece Annika "Born in the USA"...too cute!

This is a picture of the fireworks we saw sitting on mom and dad's back deck, which was probably about a mile away from us. We had quite the show this year, it was awesome!

Collin got to do sparklers this year with cousin Logan. They both had so much fun doing those sparklers...

This is a picture I took of Austin. He stood there and put his face through the deck railing to watch the fireworks. It was so cute...he was doing so good with them all...we kept hearing him say "Woah..."...it was too cute!

The Kell Klan pictures...

2008-06-28T07:55:00.000-07:00

The Kell brothers...Jud, John, Jud's twin brother Dud and Ernie at the Kell Family Reunion on Christmas Eve 2006.
Our family...minus one. Justin couldn't make it to the family reunion. (I was 2 weeks away from having Austin)

Auntie Elaine (Darin's sister) with Collin. He loves his auntie! He has fun memories of her playing in the snow with him.

This is a picture I took at my sister-in-laws 40th birthday party in February 2007, of the four cousins. It was the first time my nephews Caleb (on the left) and Justin (holding Austin) got to see their new little cousin Austin. He was about 5 weeks old here in this picture. What a great looking bunch of boys!

This is my brother -in-law Tony and my father-in-law Jud!

Austin loves his Grandpa Jud!

This is our oldest nephew Justin. He just turned 23 in May!!!

This is our crazy nephew Caleb at Christmastime 2007. He just turned 16 in February and he has his license now! Yikes!!! Watch out and stay off the sidewalks! :)

And the Family Pictures Continue...

2008-06-27T21:38:00.001-07:00

I took this picture in 2004. Wow! Time flies by so fast. It is a picture of my uncle Larry(on the left), grandpa Wendell and uncle Wendy(on the right). What an awesome picture this is! Definitely one to cherish...cause they are so few, since Larry was always on the move, being in the military!
I took this picture at our Blum gathering last May 2007. It is a picture of my mother and her siblings and parents.
My grandparents celebrated their 61st anniversary with all of us last year.

It was a great time and we look forward to many more anniversaries!

side note: for those of you that don't know, my uncle Larry is dying of a cancerous brain tumor. He doesn't have much longer to live. My heart is aching as I write this. I just wanted to post a few pictures that included him in it as a tribute to one of my awesome uncles! So, please keep my family in your prayers! Thank you very much.

Random Family Photos...

2008-06-23T21:37:00.000-07:00

My new precious niece Annika Rose Motsinger (3 weeks old here) born on May 28th to my brother Ryan and his wife Morgan. This was my first time meeting her. She loved me to hold her and I couldn't help but fall in love with her.

My mother with Austin. Austin just loves his grandma!

My aunt Tricia (my mom's sister) with Austin. He loves his aunts.

The two "tooth"less wonders! It's such a cute picture, because both Collin and his cousin Madison had to have their two front teeth pulled in the last few months. Plus, Madison loves to be lovey with her cousin, cause she loves him so much. Collin on the other hand, gets embarrased. It's pretty cute!

I got the pleasure of taking pregnancy photos for my brother Jason and his wife Krista!
The pictures turned out awesome, plus it helps that they both are so cute together!

My crazy sister-in-law Sarah! She loves to pose. Hmm...now we know where Madison gets it from! Hehe... :)

This was a cute picture of Austin and his cousin Logan. Austin put on these gloves, held out his hands and started going rrrrrhhhh!!! Like he was a monster...too funny!

All of you who know me, know that I come from a large family. These pictures just barely scratch the surface. I will be posting new pictures as time goes on...i know that some of you look at my blog as a way to catch up on my family, especially if you live out of town and rarely get to see them. I hope you all are enjoying the pictures and posts I write.

Collin is a Trooper!!!

2008-06-18T19:51:00.001-07:00

Well, today Collin had to do something he had never done before, and that way get his teeth pulled out! Ouch! He hadn't lost his two front baby teeth (upper) and weirdly enough, he had an extra set that grew in before his permanent teeth, so needless to say, after several x-rays later, and two doctors opinions, we had to get his teeth removed today, so that would allow room for his permanent teeth to drop down into place.

Unfortunately, the extra set of teeth were too far up for the dentist to remove them today, so Collin has to come back in 3 weeks to try it again!

He did pretty well, amazingly! I was proud of him. I did find it a little funny how puffy his upper gums/lip got after he got the numbing medicine...:)

Fathers Day 2008

2008-06-15T12:22:00.000-07:00

Well, since today was Darin's "special" day, we all dressed up for church. Usually I don't make the boys dress up unless it's Christmas, Easter or a wedding...but it was my excuse to put Austin in his suit that has been hanging in his closet since Christmas! He so reminded me of Collin at this age. He was so darn cute...

Darin is such a great father. He loves his sons so very much. I am proud to have him as the father of my children. (I know, sappy, huh?) But, I can't help it. So, since all of my boys were dressed up, I got a super cute picture of them before we headed to church!

After church, Collin ran outside to grab his skateboard. He was so cute! All of a sudden he really wants to learn how to skateboard...luckily I had my camera with me and got a cute picture of him in the church parking lot trying to figure it all out. It's much harder than he thought...

HAPPY FATHERS DAY TO ALL THE MEN IN MY LIFE THAT ARE FATHER'S!!! YOU ALL HAVE A VERY SPECIAL ROLE IN YOUR CHILD'S LIFE! AND, I THANK YOUR FATHER'S FOR INSTILLING IN YOU THE INGREDIENTS YOU NEED TO SHAPE YOUR CHILD'S LIFE! You all rock!

Tillamook Weekend in May 2008

2008-06-13T21:42:00.000-07:00

Darin and I took the kids and went to Tillamook for Memorial Day Weekend. We had a blast! Darin got to take Collin clam digging with his dad, brother-in-law Tony and nephews Justin and Caleb. They all really enjoyed it quite a bit. Great family bonding time. We also got to hang out with my brother Jason and his beautiful wife Krista! As usual, my boys love playing with Logan. They all get a long pretty well. Austin is just old enough now that he can play with them too! Collin wanted to play with his other cousins as well, but they were out of town visiting their other grandparents....so, maybe next time he'll get to play with all of his Tillamook cousins!

We also got to hang out with my cousins Amber and Tabitha and their families in celebration of Amber turning 33! Yes! I can't believe she is 33! I am only 4 months behind her in age, so mine is coming soon...:( Here's a few pictures of my visit with them)

If you would like to see more pictures from this trip, I will be posting some to my myspace page. Thanks for being faithful viewers of my page! it means a lot...love to you all.

Baseball Season Recap 2008

2008-06-12T19:01:00.000-07:00

Collin played baseball again this year with the Cal Ripken team. He was the strongest hitter on the team, the tallest and the all around best out on the field (when he wasn't busy eating sunflower seeds out on the field)! The coach loved him! He was most improved over last year, that's for sure! I am posting a half dozen or so pictures to recap his season! The one of him running with his sunglasses on is his home run hit! He was the only one to get a home run! Go Collin!!!!!

Trampoline Time

2008-05-30T21:06:00.000-07:00

My boys both love the trampoline. Tonight after dinner they got to go and play on it since it was still nice outside and the weather was great! Check out their hair from the static! Too cute...

Field Trip

2008-05-10T22:52:00.000-07:00

Darin had the day off, and actually got to go with Collin on his class field trip to the Oregon Coast Aquarium in Newport. Here are a few pictures from that trip!

These Feet Are Made For Walkin'

2008-04-28T20:51:00.000-07:00

It's official! Austin has hit another milestone! (wahhh, sob, cry) Mom is sad, but also ecstatic! Austin took 4 steps tonight all by himself :) He kept doing it over and over, and would laugh each time he took a step! It was too cute! Here are some pictures to capture the moment...

Like Father, Like Son

2008-04-28T20:48:00.000-07:00

I don't get photo moments like this very often. This was taken on Saturday, at Collin's baseball game! It's just precious! Darin's little "mini me" (Of course this was a day before he got his hair all cut off)!!!

Hair Today...Gone Tomorrow!!!

2008-04-27T16:25:00.001-07:00

Well, it's official! The baby hair is gone! Austin just grew up a bit today, cause he got his FIRST ever haircut! He didn't really like it much either! But, as always, I had to take pictures! I really think he looks like Collin a bit more now...crazy how that works! Plus, his hair seems more light brown now...

Let's Go Fly A Kite!

2008-04-13T23:13:00.001-07:00

Today was a beautiful day! We bought a push mower from my friend Dana and her husband last night, so Darin got to mow the lawn (or should I say weeds) finally! We went to church in shifts today because Austin is almost better, but we didn't want to chance him playing with a sick kid in the nursery at church. Collin got a new kite today. Can you guess what is on the kite? Yep! Spiderman!!! Is there anything else? I mean, come on! Not with my kid...it's Spiderman all the way! I decided to take Austin out today and let him have some fresh air for a change. I got some good pictures of Collin and Darin flying the kite! At the end of the flying session, Collin tried to chase the kite down. It was pretty funny!

Take Me Out to the Ballgame...

2008-04-06T10:35:00.001-07:00

Well, yesterday started the first of many baseball games for Collin. He has done really well in practice, and he had three hits yesterday in his game! I was unable to go to the game, due to Austin having pneumonia and it was cold outside, but I got to take these pictures of my baby before we left for the game! We are so proud of you Collin and we love you very much!

Easter Festivities 2008

2008-03-24T19:35:00.000-07:00

We got to celebrate Easter with my cousins Kasi and Brittney. We had fun coloring eggs. The boys had fun getting into their Easter baskets. Austin was sick, so we didn't get to go to church, but we still remembered the reason for celebration! He is Risen!

Fun, Fun, Fun!!!

2008-03-16T21:03:00.000-07:00

We went to Eugene yesterday to celebrate Collin's friend Kyle's 7th birthday. They rented a place that was like having a park inside, without all the crumby weather and stuff like that! Plus, we were the only ones there playing on the jungle gym. Austin got to go down the slide for the first time and he absolutely loved it. When I let him go down by himself, he ended up falling backwards and started laughing when he got to the bottom of the slide. It was super cute! Collin got to climb the rock wall. He is our monkey!!!

Feed Me Brotha!!!

2008-03-16T19:51:00.001-07:00

Austin was being so helpful and cute today! He kept trying to shove fish crackers in Darin's mouth. Austin just kept trying to feed daddy and daddy was getting way too full! But, Austin wouldn't stop, so Collin came to the rescue and let Austin feed him. You can tell by the picture how many fish crackers he kept shoving in Collin's mouth! I had to capture the moment in pictures, cause it was so darn cute!

Give Me A Kiss!

2008-03-02T21:03:00.000-08:00

Darin and Collin got these lips with teeth attached to a pacifier for Austin today, and I couldn't resist posting these pictures because Austin was so stinkin' funny looking with it in his mouth. At first Austin put it in his mouth and laughed as he spit it out. Eventually, I got him to leave it in his mouth long enough to get some cute pictures...

Family Ties

2008-02-28T18:40:00.000-08:00

We just recently had our family portrait taken for the church directory. It is the first family portrait since Austin joined our family and the first one since Collin was 3 1/2. Family is very important to me and so are preserving memories. If we never took any pictures, what would our great-grandchildren have to remember us by?

Aren't my boys super cute? Collin has really enjoyed becoming the "big" brother! When I asked him a few months ago how he likes having a little brother, he said "it's just like I always dreamed". Darn, that made me cry! He's so sweet...

Families are so awesome!

Where in the world did that tooth come from?

2008-02-21T22:27:00.000-08:00

So, I was getting Austin ready for bed tonight, and I happened to glance in his mouth and I noticed he had a 3rd tooth on the bottom. I thought "What! Where did that tooth come from?" I don't remember seeing that this morning. Huh? I yelled to Darin to ask him if Austin got another tooth and we just missed it? He wasn't sure either, cause he's a guy and they aren't that observant, I guess! So, I called my mom and she said that she remembers Austin having a lot of teeth in his mouth when we saw her FOUR days ago! So, I had to look back at this picture I took on Sunday (4 days ago) and sure enough, there is another tooth on the bottom! I feel so bad! If I had realized Austin was teething, I would have given him Orajel or something...but, he was a trooper! No complaints or whines out of him. Crazy! I guess I am blessed with TWO good boys! Just thought I would share this, cause we all know how busy life can get. I guess my advice would be to just stop and smell the roses once in a while, in my case, it would be to stop and notice more, or something...

Crazy Days of February

2008-02-18T22:09:00.000-08:00

So, as you can see by the pictures, we love to have fun. Collin is full of spirit! He loves to be silly. I, on the other hand, love to take pictures and you will constantly see me with the camera in hand. And, because of that, I hardly get in the picture...so, here is a photo with me in it (only because I held the camera out in front of us). Austin has the big eyes and I love it when I can get a super cute picture of him up close...enjoy!

A Snowy Day in January 2008

2008-02-14T19:46:00.000-08:00

We had snow this year! We couldn't believe it! We had up to 8 inches of snow and it was so much fun getting to play in it this year.

Austin wasn't quite sure about the snow, but he still liked it! You can see by the look on his face :0) Too cute!

Darin and Collin got to build a snowman.

Mom even got out there in the snow as well. Collin and mommy had fun throwing snowballs at each other!

Valentine's Day 2008

2008-02-14T19:07:00.000-08:00

Well, my sister-in-law created a blogspot, and my friend Wendy has one, so i thought I should start one too! This way, all my family can see this page. Although I do have a myspace page, only my friends on there get to see the pictures and stuff that I post! This way, all can view if they want too! HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY TO ALL!