{205}

This guy.

{197}

"Yeehaw!" he says. #hibachi

{summer in a nutshell}

Whew...that went by too fast!

pictorial {october}

Our month in pictures...

And I leave you with quite possibly the cutest PSA you've ever seen...

this is {becoming} a habit...

Ugh I am a FAILURE at blogging!!
I blame Instagram and Facebook.
At any rate...here is an update via pictures of what we've been doing the past month or so:

We have a beautiful River Greenway that goes all the way back into Ouabache State Park.

We love to walk or bike this path, and I love to snap photos of the beautiful creation!

See that Queen Anne's Lace? It will ALWAYS remind me of my dear Grandma Beulah.

I took the munchkins school shopping and of course we had to have lunch at our favorite...Biaggi's!

Have I ever mentioned what an awesome Daddy this guy is?!

Korie threw a SURPRISE party for Chris when he finished his Master's Degree.

It was a New Orleans theme...complete with a Cajun Food Truck!!

We had lots of fun celebrating with Chris.

Mack and Lincoln carried on the Broyles/Troyer tradition when they instantly became fast friends.

And look at those 4 adorable cousins!!

Piper did it! She read 1000 books before Kindergarten!

We're proud of our Peanut!

My beautiful, dear, sweet friend Mercy invited me to her Birthday Outing Day.

This was my very first ever PEDICURE! Yes, I am serious. And yes, it was awesome!

We celebrated our anniversary by attending a wedding! Haha!

That sounds silly but the wedding was in Indy so we had quite a lot of time alone AND

we got to be all dressed up! Joel & Erica (the happy couple) were on my India team

and Joel's parents are very near and dear to us.

Let the homework begin!

Mack and Piper are as different as night and day when it comes to this chore.

Piper is ready to jump right in and cheerfully gets the job done.

Mack avoids, begs, pleads, and bargains.

Both do their best and work hard...even when spelling is tough for the boy.

We had another monarch!

This is Maxzilla.

She was kind enough to emerge from her cocoon on Labor Day

while the kids were home from school on holiday.

Piper & Papoo give a whole new meaning to "Facetime".

Two of my favorites from my August Photo a Day challenge.

We have some new traditions!!

Several Sundays a month, we meet our good friends the Gerbers at Taco Bell

for supper, laughter, fellowship and shenanigans.

(MOM...see Ashley's tray?? That's JUST FOR YOU!!!!!)

Since the kids started school, Jason and I walk together whenever possible in the mornings.

Another "since the kids are in school" new tradition is Bummies Tuesdays!

Bummies is our local BK Rootbeer Stand.

For some reason, Tuesday lunch finds us under the canopy enjoying our favorite fares.

I PROMISE to do my very best to start updating much more frequently!!

waaaay over due...

I think perhaps the only readers I have left would be my Mama and my Grammy and my Grandpa Broyles!
This poor little abandoned blog.
But even if all that's left is Mom and Grammy and Grandpa...
they are worth EVERY post
because I love them dearly!
So...Mom, Grammy, & Grandpa...
here is your waaay overdue update.

Piper had a birthday!

I can't believe our baby is five.

We celebrated with CoCo China,

and when we got home she had precious parcels from Naples awaiting her!

With a new bike and countless blessings from Grandpa & Robin,

her birthday was all a sweet little five year old could wish for!

Turning five means Kindergarten.

Kindergarten means check-ups.

THREE of them!

Eyes, teeth, and body...

all in tip-top shape.

This little Peanut is ready for learnin'!

We invited the Gerber kids to spend a WHOLE DAY with us!

Fun was had by all...big and small.

Mom took the kids for a few days.

It was HEAVEN for all of us!

Well...maybe not for Mom & Dad...

but the Baker five were extremely blessed by Kamma Kamp!

In between all the major events,

we've been soaking up our summer.

Bike rides, kisses, playgrounds.

Splash pads, swimming pools, and water slides.

Campfires including the s'mores, silly faces.

Burnt french fries to remind us of Papoo.

Mack's Mother's Day gift - two tiny shoots in a styrofoam cup

that have now grown into a beautiful marigold plant.

We hope you are also enjoying an extremely blessed summer!!!