SuMmEr FuN!!!!

I can't believe we have less than two before the kiddos are back in school!!! We have been super busy this summer....not once have I heard the boys say, "I'm bored"!! On the rare day we have absolutely nothing planned...I think they actually enjoy being at home! We have been swimming, bike riding, going to camps, hanging with friends, going to bible study, and running from sport to sport! So here is a snid-bit of what we have been up to!

Last week the boys headed off to college! It was actually much easier dropping them off at college than I had expected....I had assumed there would be tears....well, I'm sure it helped that I was able to pick them up an hour and a half later and that it was only 4 days long! Butler County College had this awesome program this summer, Kid's College. The kids had a huge selection of classes they were able to take...Gabe chose LegoManiac and Grady chose Flight! They both had a blast! Gabe was able to build lego machines that actually moved! He learned how to program the machine on the computer and program it to do exactly what he wanted it to do! He Loved IT! Grady learned about different things that fly and what makes them fly...he also learned how to make a pretty awesome paper airplane....to him, the most important thing a boy can learn! He was happy, so I was happy!

And, when your thermometer reaches this number, I can't think of anything better to do than this.......

......that's right, we tried to fry and egg on the driveway!! Well, it didn't work, but it sure was fun trying! We chose not to use a pan, because we were sure the black driveway would be plenty hot....it's hot enough to cook our barefoot, but alas, it was not!

Baseball has finally come to an end! Just in time for us to start football and soccer! We actually had 2 weeks off...a very much enjoyed two weeks off! Both boys played fantastically this year! Gabe played a new position this year.....Catcher! I think he is going to go for pitcher next year, but he enjoyed learning a new position this year! Grady improved by leaps and bounds this year! He will be in the same league next year because of the way his birthday falls....he should be quite the stud next year! The highlight of his season was of course his homerun! I love watching baseball...I can't wait for next summer!

Gabe's end of the season trophy!

Grady's end of the season trophy!

And the cooking lessons have continued! Here they are learning to make caramel! Gabe asked me what blondies were one day...and I said, "Here let me show you!"...well, what better way to find out than to make them yourself! We made caramel walnut blondies...YUMMY!

Here they are right before they went into the oven!

That evening they were also in charge of dinner.....green beans, biscuits and goulash!

I am very proud of these two! Gabe can pretty much do anything with hamburger...that is a pretty good start to keep him from starving when he is actually out on his own! And, I figure with the few desserts they are learning, they should be able to whoo the ladies!!!




Well, that is an update of our summer fun this month! We have a few more things planned for the last two weeks!!! We'll keep you updated!

Our Family Is Growing!!

Meet Phoenix and Indian...the 2 newest additions to the Fox Family! Had you going for a minute didn't I??!!

Chicago!!!

A view from the top of the John Hancock!

Shrunk to the size of a penny in The Field Museums Underground Adventure!

Serious about finishing that Gino's Pizza!




On the Ledge at the Willis Tower!

Go Cubbies!!

10 Stories up on the Ferris Wheel at the Navy Pier!

Breakfast on the train...we sure look bright-eyed and bushy-tailed for being up since 1:00a.m.!

Been there, done that! We had a wonderful time in Chicago...but there really is no place like home....or at least no place like your own bed! First of all...Chicago is a fantastic place for families... second, the city's public transit is extremely easy to navigate and my third piece of insight....if you should have the desire to take Amtrak on a trip that would last more than a few hours (and by few, I mean very few!) get a sleeper! The reserved coach seats were extremely comfortable and plenty of room to move about, but I think the sleeper would have allowed for a more relaxing journey!

That said...Chicago was fantastic! Our first Chicago experience was a taxi ride....the boys loved every minute of that action packed ride! After settling into our hotel, we walked down to the beach and to the Navy Pier! We also took in one of the best fireworks show we have ever seen at the Navy Pier! The next day we headed to Wrigley Field to see the Cubs take on the Giants!!! It was a great game going 13 innings and the Cubs pulling off the win with a 3 run home run by Geovany Soto in the bottom of the 13th with 2 outs! One of the most exciting baseball games we have been to! On Thursday it was museum day! We took in the Field Museum...where we saw dinosaurs, jewels and gemstones, Egyptian artifacts, and were "shrunk" down to the size of bug to see what it's like underground. We then ventured down to the Shedd Aquarium.....it was cool, but after being to at least 5 different aquariums in the last 4 years...I think we have probably had our fill! We did get to see an aquatic show featuring their dolphins and a 4-D version of the movie Planet Earth...those two things were probably the highlight of the aquarium! The last museum of the day was the Adler Planetarium...I'm sure an astrologer would have appreciated this museum, but for the average person...the 3-D IMAX movie was the best part! Of the three museums....I would highly recommend The Field Museum...the other two are okay, they came in the CityPass ticket package we purchased, so we only paid half price for the tickets....they were worth what we paid! On Saturday we grabbed the Subway again for a trip to the Willis Tower (formerly known as the Sears Tower). The Skydeck Ledge was pretty awesome...I am deathly afraid of heights and I even took a brave step out on the Ledge! The views were pretty clear for the day...I'm not sure I saw all 4 states you were supposed to be able to see, but I could definitely see a long way! That evening we headed down to Gino's East for dinner.....this is a famous pizza joint....there is writing all over the seats, walls and tables...and if you look hard enough you can spot some famous names amid all of the graffiti! The pizza was out of this world...YUMMY! We then headed over to the John Hancock Center for an amazing view of a Chicago sunset and some coffee and gelato! We ended our trip to Chicago with some shopping on the Magnificent Mile! It was a fantastic trip....but, I think I could be anywhere as long as the company I'm with is my 3 favorite fellas!

Good Times!

Haverhill Christian Block Party....petting zoo, cook out, homemade ice cream, fishing, bounce houses, water balloon fight, four-wheeler train ride and friends....I can't think of a better way to spend a Saturday evening!

Fishing at Fox Farm.....3 on the line at once! Now that is a good day of fishing!

Shawn's!

Gabe's!

and Grady's!

Baseball has begun to fill almost every weeknight!!! We are having a fantastic time cheering on the A's and the Red Sox....who wear blue! Gabe has been playing first and second base...but may be trying his hand at catcher this week! Grady has played second and center field! Both are doing well....baseball is definitely one of my favorite sports to watch!

And because no summer break would be complete without an opportunity to break your neck....we busted out the slip and slide! It started off innocent enough, but after about 30 minutes the boys were creating new and interesting ways to slide!

One day while doing yard work, I spotted 2 baby water turtles! We kept them over night and took them to Augusta Lake the next morning!! We had a lot of fun playing with those little fellas!

Our summer break has started off with a bang.....I can't believe we are already 2 weeks in!!!
Happy Summer Everyone!

The Fruits of Our Labor!

Here is the garden....it has grown by leaps and bounds!! Everything is really taking off....we have baby strawberries all over and can not wait for the tomatoes to start blooming!! Hard to believe most of the garden was started from seeds, inside in the middle of February....pretty amazing!

So far we have beets and peas....Shawn and I have pickled 7 jars of beets and that has hardly made a dent in the beet row! As for the peas....we have had them 3 nights.....and we have more that need to be picked! I think I will be freezing those....I'm pretty sure the boys are on a pea strike!

Happy Birthday Shawn!

Shawn being way more low key than Grady, opted for a single birthday party! We went fishing on Shawn's actual birthday, so we had his birthday dinner and dessert a day later! Of course, the only thing Shawn is not low key on is his choice of birthday dinner!!! It usually consists of items I have never heard of and have no clue where to find them! Well, a few days before his birthday he saw a cooking show where they were making filet stuffed with a blue cheese butter concoction....so we gave it a whirl!! It turned out fantastic! We also had bacon ranch potatoes, asiago cheese bread and asparagus with tarragon! For dessert....of course, staying non-conventional, we had vanilla custard! Note: It is very difficult to stand candles in custard! We finished off the birthday bash with presents!!! I think Shawn had a pretty great day....not as great as if I would just live the day like any other, but since I won't let any one's day just pass by...I think it was pretty good! Hope you had a fantastic birthday, Shawn!!

Him and his new man tool...a drill press! He was actually really surprised....I don't think he thought I would actually get the right thing!

Happy Birthday Grady!!

Our baby officially turned 6 last week!! He is such a blessing to our little family......we would be soooo bored without him!!! A little dose of Grady and your bad day instantly vanishes...something about his sweet little smile and quirky little sayings and you can forget all of your troubles! God knew what he was doing 6 years ago when he gave the 3 of us Grady.....3 calm, quiet people definitely need a kick....and he was just the spice we all needed!

He actually had 3 birthday celebrations...yep, he's spoiled! His first was the party at school, then he had one at home and yesterday we ended the trifecta of birthday bliss with a friend party! He enjoyed every minute of the attention...I know, hard to believe!!

A Big Boy Bike!!!

A re-enactment of the blowing of the candles...Mom was a little too slow on the actual event!

Lovin' us some black frosting!!

Grady and his buddies enjoying the ice cream cake on the 90 degree day!

Kysen and Jake standing by in case Grady needed any assistance...Love those two!

So, for Grady's party we had outdoor fun stations....they included water balloon target throw, outdoor bowling, horse shoes, ring toss, croquet, and an obstacle course!! Everyone had a great time and I'm sure they all slept great that night! Thanks for sharing Grady's day!

Grady's First Sleepover!

Last Saturday night, Grady had his first sleepover!!! He went to his buddy, Kysen's house for an all-nighter! Katrina, Kysen's Mom, and I had already worked out which one of us would bring Grady home in the middle of the night...but you know, that little stinker made it all night! We were both shocked when I arrived on Sunday morning! The boys had a blast....they played flashlight tag, Wii, went McDonald's PlayLand, Bakugan and Legos....and the best part, donuts for breakfast! Sounds like a pretty fantastic first sleepover to me! In a couple of weeks, Kysen is going to give it a go over here.....we'll see if he can make it all night! I'll let you know how that goes!!!

Happy 60th Anniversary!

Last weekend, we had the pleasure of sharing a very special anniversary with Shawn's Grandparents!! They celebrated 60 wonderful years of marriage! WOW! Grandpa and Grandma Koop are just what I would imagine love should look like after that many years to perfect it.....they have so much love and respect for each other and have always kept the Lord first in their lives. Shawn and I are very lucky to have an example like them to follow......so Shawn here is to 47 more years!

Our Little Graduate!

Yesterday was Grady's Kindergarten Graduation! We are so proud of that little stinker! It is so hard to believe he will be in 1st Grade next year!! He has come so far this year.....he reads and writes beautifully, he has calmed waayyy down, he has become quite the social butterfly, and if he had an ounce of shyness....he has completely lost that! He has grown up so much...I was looking back at pictures from the beginning of the school year....he has changed so much....not our little baby anymore! Congratulations Grady.....you big first grader, you!