Mission Missouri = Full Success

Well, after we left Kamp Kanukuk, we headed to Missouri for adventures on the Lake of the Ozarks. We stayed with my Aunt Nelda and Uncle Steve, who took great care of us and showered our children with lots of love. See the adventures below!

First boat ride for our three boys! Matthew and Caleb loved it, but Luke was not too happy in his lifejacket :)

Piano practice with the best!

I went water skiing before Tim and Uncle Steve fished...the water was cold, but it felt good to ski again! It had been too long!

The boys did lots of watering (overwatering actually) to keep the plants looking good!

Another boat ride with just boys!

Tim's big catch off the paddle boat!

Matthew and Grauntie Nelda walking around the block (notice how beautiful and green everything is by them)!

Chooch is keepin' it real in his sunglasses and TCU hat...

Gruncle Steve took the boys on a fun tractor ride which they loved!

Little John Deere Greens...

Luke, Emily, and A. Nelda snap a shot before the girls sneak off to shop!

Grantie Nelda reading to the twins before night time...

G. Nelda giving swim lessons to Caleb...

G. Nelda and Caleb taking a paddleboat ride...

Uncle Steve gave Mr. Luke his own ice cream cone and this was the result...

Lukester keepin' Uncle Steve busy...

Doing a little fishing off the dock...

Aunt Nelda feeding Luke a quality breakfast that I assure you he does not get at home!

The fam hanging out on the deck...the weather was amazing!

Sweet boys...

A little irony here...

Road Trip Part One...

We had a really fun trip in June with a stop to see our dear friends, The Sparks, at Kanakuk!!! They are the type of friends that we only see once a year, but we just pick right back up where we left off. Tim and Collin were in the same engineering program at TCU and have been great friends for a long time. He and Rachel are so much fun and are now the directors at K-Kountry. We got the grand tour and got to use all of their fun facilities. We loved getting to see what they do and how they spend their summers. It also brought Tim and I back to our camp days where we first met. I can't explain it, but there is just something amazing about camp...learning to serve others, sitting under great teaching, having the time of your life, doing pranks without getting caught, meeting friends you will have for a lifetime ...it's the best!

This was Tim and the boys at Kanakuk's family camp, which is like a mini resort for families to come. It was awesome and the pool was SUPER FUN!

Riding the golf cart around camp...

Beckett and Luke chillin' before swim time!

Braden, Matthew and Caleb running around like wild men...

Ella and Emily reading together...

Lunch time at the camp dining hall!

Ella, Braden, Matthew and Caleb...

Rach and I with the youngest kiddos (Beckett and Luke)...we totally took over their camp house when we were there!

Caleb doing the Horned Frog sign to amuse Collin, who is also a TCU alum...

Collin and Tim with Lukester in front of this awesome pool that we got to swim at!

Happy Birthday to Caleb and Matthew!!!

Matthew, you are such a sweet boy. When you look at us with those big brown eyes, your Dad and I just melt. You love to play by yourself and load up all of your Finding Nemo sea creatures into your bus and disappear. You love building lego towers with mommy and daddy for your Buzz and Woody to play in.
You are doing such a great job learning your manners. The other day in the car, we went through the drive-thru at chik-fil-a. Mom asked for more ketchup and you said “Mommy, you forgot to say please.” You keep us in check Chooch! You love to give us unsolicited hugs and kisses all the time and we could listen to your sweet prayers all day long. You love Luke very much and love playing ball with him. However, you did ask me the other day if Luke could go back in “mommy’s tummy sometimes so you wouldn’t have to share your Nemo with him.”
Our prayer for you over this next year is that you would continue to learn to share and think of others. That is a really hard thing to figure out, even Mom and Dad struggle with that. But, we pray that God will continue to work in your heart and that you would understand God’s Word more and more. We love you soooo much, Chooch.




Caleb, you are our little comedian. You love to be videoed and love the attention. You would always rather be with Mom and Dad or with one of your brothers. We love how excited you get when you run and how you swing your arms in the air and say “weady, set, gooooo!!!”
You have such a kind heart. The other day when we were eating dinner you said, “I like mommy and daddy. And it makes me happy when daddy plays defense (you love playing basketball with your dad).” You are so very curious and ask “why not” and “why come (instead of “how come?”) frequently. The other day when we were eating our pb& j sandwiches in the car you said, “Stop mommy! We forgot to pray! Then, you proceeded to pray “Dear Lord, I pray for our sandwiches and for Baby Lukey and for Daddy’s shoulders and for Mr. Clay’s boo-boos and for the trees, and for our car and for Baby Lukey and Matchew (this is how you pronounce Matthew :)), AMEEEEEN! I loved it!
Our prayer for you over the upcoming year is that you would understand, even at a young age, God’s love for you and that you would use your words for God’s glory. We love you soooo much, Cabers!

***Special thanks to our dear friend, Laura Hulburt, for sending us these pics. We loved them!

I'm in the Lord's Army

This is a great video of Caleb singing

The Future of Glendarroch Homes...

I must say we have entered into a totally new phase of life around here and it's all about Daddy. If Tim has on cowboy boots, Caleb and Matthew want them on to. If he is wearing a baseball hat, out of nowhere two little toddlers appear with baseball hats on. When Tim leaves for work, the boys get on their little busses and say "Bye, Mom! We are going to work with Daddy!" When Tim leaves, there are usually tears shed and when he gets home, there are ALWAYS sprints to the back door and lots of hugs and kisses involved. Let me just tell you, Tim is LOVIN' this stage!!!

As many of you know, Tim and his brother have a custom home building company in Fort Worth, Glendarroch Homes. Well, Matthew and Caleb have been very interested in Daddy's work as of late and so Tim has taken them to several job sites lately. The boys now have their own screwdrivers and hammers and love to help their daddy "build." This is Caleb jumping off one of the steps...

Matthew is having lots of fun, too! It looks like there is more play than work being done :)

Up the stairs with their "tools" in hand...

Dad pulling the wagon to the jobsite....

Aunt Jenn and Luke hanging out after Easter...

Caleb, Ty & Chooch at Pops and Mere-Mere's house...

These three have so much fun together!

Blowin' bubbles...

Easter shot of the twins...

Luke was not so happy during these pictures!!!

Family shot!!!

We were so happy to have Uncle Casey and his girlfriend, Nicole, join us for Easter weekend...and of course we always love to see our Papa and Mimi, too!

Catching up with the Bates boys...

Well, it has been a while since I have posted. I decided it was time that I updated our blog so that ya'll could catch up with us. Spring has arrived and it has brought lots of fun times outside and lots of adventures with these sweet boys!

Caleb's silly face...

Luke with his handsome haircut...

Our brown eyed boy...

Getting ready for church....I hardly ever get pics with the boys so this was great!

My dad got the boys a bat and baseball tee and they play all the time. They LOVE it!

Chooch getting ready to swing...

Playing in the rain...

Sweet Caleb...we were picking off petals from one of our roses...we were talking about how God clothes the flowers of the field and how much He loves and takes care of us. Caleb sat and listened to me, however the child below was not interested...

He was busy using his flower as a weapon!!!

Our drummer boy during American Idol...

Mommy and Lukester...

Lots of giggles with daddy...

Luke does NOT like wearing hats, but he looks so cute in them so we love taking his picture in them!