What Have I Done....

Oh man. I have done what I always said I wouldn't do. I started a blog. Crap. However, for those of you reading this now, I would like to make a disclaimer that I cannot be held responsible for late/nonexistant/short etc. postings. I like the idea of having a place for all our family and friends to see pictures and read stories, but I'm not sure how awesome I will be at keeping up with it. But I will try.

First step: Introductions
I'm assuming that most of you reading this know who we are. But for those of you who don't, let me lay it out for you. Our family consists of myself, my husband Avery, my two stepsons Allen and Thomas, and our two black labs Saddie and Chazz. Allen is four going on fourteen and Thomas is two, which he will tell you the moment you meet him. My husband and I have the boys every other weekend (which.is.not.enough) and sporatic holidays, etc. We have recently moved into a new home and are still working on unpacking and settling in. I am a part time student and work full time so things can get pretty hectic. Our life is crazy, but I wouldn't have it any other way :)

Second step: Updates
Our summer has flown by, as I'm sure everyone else's has. We have had Allen and Thomas for eight weeks and they will be returning to their Mom's house tonight (giant.sad.face) Packing up their stuff last night broke my heart and I imagine it will be like that for a while. It's the little things I will miss, like the smell of their shampoo, and the million little white socks I always find in the strangest places, and the way Allen cuddles when he first wakes up, and the way Thomas says, "I wuv you Dawcey." As hard as it is for me, I think its even harder for Avery. Our family is our life and when they are gone, a part of us is missing.

Ok, enough of the sad stuff. While we had the boys we managed to pack LOTS of activities into eight tiny weeks. We started with swim lessons...

and then started a butterfly garden with caterpillars and let the butterflies go once they had hatched...





and then drove ALL THE WAY to Reno, with a special trip to Lake Tahoe...


and we did LOTS of yard work...


and we spent time with our boys.

I will always be thankful for the time that we get to spend with them because they are amazingly wonderful kids. Their smiles warm my heart and I am blessed to be a part of their family. I think my Mama said it best when she told me, "their Mom may have given birth to them, but you gave them your heart." Thank you Allen and Thomas for reminding me everyday what really matters in life.