Happy Royal 4th Birthday, Sir Jonas!

The day began with Dominic's elementary school Show Choir performance. Family came up from Houston, even Howie! It was a special time!

Since we were having a "knights and castle" theme this year, we lucked out with a castle bounce house!

Bronius was very proud of the pinata he made from scratch. It was definitely something to behold! :) 

           I had some help from my friends at the HEB bakery who made this delicious cake, but I added the "reinforcements," shall we say? :) 

More action shots of our knights and ladies trying to slay the dragon pinata!

Some shots of dear friends, Me with Melissa Buchan (who is moving away in a few weeks!!! Sad, sad day!) and Roy Rodriguez with daughter Dorothy.

Two of the most important ladies who make magic happen in my life!

       

                                      And a quick shot of my parents who painted these canvases for Jonas' birthday together.  I sometimes have to pinch myself when I realize how lucky I am! :)

          And the baby of our family is 4 years old, today. My how time flies. We are so thankful for this little boy and the zeal and joy he brings to our family.  My rose in winter, my Christmas baby, thanks be to God for our Jonas Raphael!

                                       

Red C Benefit, Chemistry Day, Character Day, Hallow's Eve, Veteran's Day program, Happy Birthday Senele and Farewell Hawkeye

We enjoyed a lovely date night out with our couples group benefitting the RED-C radio station.

             We had a great time at the TAMU Chemistry day on campus making potions and explosions! Senelis (Grandfather) Motekaitis, one of the TAMU Chemistry department's originals, would have been proud of them!

Character Day at school! Grandma Peggy made Milo a Skippy Jon Jones costume from scratch!!!

                                             
                                                 Halloween Carnival at Jonas' preschool

                                                     Hallow's Eve Supper at home

                                                  

                 Tron, Hawkeye the Avenger, Max from Where the Wild Things Are, a Spooky Witch and a Snarling Pirate! 

AMAZING Tribute to Veteran's on 11/11 at the boys school. Dominic had a special speaking part in the beginning. The music was powerful and brought us all to tears. Veterans were invited to stand at the front when their divisions were called. It was beautiful. I hope to post video soon!

                                       
                                                     Picture day with Mr. Dabb's at Jonas' preschool

Happy early Birthday to Senele! We went to Fritella's for a fireside supper and the Nutcracker afterwards! We are so thankful for her. :) 

And finally......a farewell to Hawkeye. This sweet little pup brought a lot of love to our home, but also....a lot of chaos. He was a good boy, but the energy of our children proved to be a real challenge in training him. It wasn't the feeding, walking and cleaning up after the dog that troubled us....but the fact that we couldn't properly train our puppy to be around our boys safely, or vice versa. We were VERY blessed to find someone who WAS, however, and moreover, someone who was able teach him how to hunt birds, which is what he was born to do as a hound. We will always think of Hawkeye fondly when we look at the holes in the backyard or find toys that have been gnawed on a little bit. :)  We pray our boy has a happy hunting life ahead of him!

Sarah's sibling surprise birthday in Oregon :)

Steve, Lesley and I flew to Oregon to surprise Sarah for her big milestone birthday this year :) The traveling was easy...the true feat was keeping this a surprise for 4 months! :)  Lesley and I flew to Portland for the day and waited for Steve's flight to come in from NYC, and then we all drove in to Eugene together the following morning.

At the McCoy home after the "big reveal" and everyone stopped hyperventilating.

It didn't take long for Sarah, Mary and Lesley to jump into song and dance with "A Whole New World" to celebrate our time together :) 

A little walk after dinner in the neighborhood with Kevin and Owen.

Owen and Mary regaling us with their duets after dinner.

Birthday breakfast at Off the Waffle

Mist on the covered bridge on the way to Salt Creek Falls

The breath-taking Salt Creek Falls

A pristine river on the way back from S.C. Falls

Mums and Sissies :)

Glorious Sahalie Falls

Stopping at a Hot Springs Lodge for a picture on the way to Sahalie Falls

A picture of the original four by the McKenzie River.

One of my favorites....three sisters in front of the mountain range called the Sisters (see the three peaks?) in the TOWN of Sisters, Oregon. :) 

Sarah's beautiful French birthday dinner at Marche. 

                               

I was so thankful to get to spend this time with my siblings, and take time out of our busy lives. What a gift it was for ALL of us! :) I'm so appreciative to all who filled in for me in MANY ways, while I was away from my family! :)  I will be glowing from the memories of this trip for a long time. 

Rothko canvases, school fun run and farm patch fun

Flannel Friday, my favorite day of the week. And here is proof that I try to look like a girl sometimes too :)

October is off to a crisp and fun start! We are enjoying art class, piano, choir rehearsals and flag football. Jonas is adjusting to Montessori school and the boys have all been blessed with teachers who are great fits for each of their personalities. Bronius and I are able to spend more time together and also support each other in the things we are trying to do individually. Everyone is healthy, and for me that is probably what I thank the Lord for the most. What else could I hope for??? So thankful for this full life and the health and strength to take care of those who need it! 

Wishing you a happy, blessed Fall!