Procrastination is not productive!

So I have been meaning to write a new post for 2 weeks now, but I kept telling myself I'd wait until I got the pictures up from our adventures and share it all at once...well, here were are two weeks later, with no pictures and no updates!  I hate that I procrastinate and justify it with excuses that seem like great reasons!  Not today though:)  Guess the pictures will happen another day.  For now, here's what we've been up to...
July fourth weekend we headed to Morton to visit my parents and see my brother Jeremy and his awesome family who had driven up from MO.  We love spending time with Jeremy, Raelenna and their four kids!  Each time we see them it becomes more and more evident to me that kids do grow up way too fast.  Last time we saw them (Easter I think), Seth-their youngest-still seemed like a baby, but now he is so big!  He follows his big brother Drew around all the time, doing his best to imitate his every action. He's still as stubborn as someone in his family :) but I love it!  Stubborn people make things happen!!  Drew is so verbal now, and his sweet little voice mixed with those big eyes and curly locks are going to be TROUBLE!  He was very interested in Lucy this visit, who he mostly referred to as Reece (the neighborhood dog from back home).  Ella, the next oldest had also grown up a lot.  She's always been wise beyond her years, and the same is still true.  I have to remind myself when I'm around her that she's only 5!  She is so quick to pick up on things and always looking for an adventure, although she may have met her match with my parents little neighbor girl.  They were quite the pair!  Riley is the one who was the biggest shock to us this time around...it was as if the little girl had completely faded and a beautiful, caring, woman was beginning to emerge.  I am so proud of my amazing niece, and know that this is a summer of transformation for her life.  Several weeks ago she went on a mission trip to DC, and next week she'll be traveling to Africa with her parents.  What an awesome experience for her!  I can only imagine how much different she will seem to me in the coming months as God continues to shape her life.  Can you tell we love them?!
Sadly, my other brother and his family couldn't be there this year, but they got to have 7 days of each other in Mexico, so I know their time was well spent.  I love that we get to see them every week at church...hug them, watch them minister and impact people's lives in positive ways and watch their not so little anymore boys grow up!!  The older I get the more grateful I am for the amazing family God has blessed us with.  My parents, Luke's parents, our grandparents, and all of our siblings, nieces and nephews are people who I cherish with all of my heart.
After our family time, Luke and I took Whit to Chicago for the first time for "Taste of Chicago."  It's something we've always wanted to try, and it was fun to be downtown together.  The place was packed since we went on a Saturday, but we had a great time and enjoyed all the things we tried.  For the "fourth" we spent the evening with great friends from our church grilling out, playing with the little ones, and watching some fireworks.  It was a great night despite a few mishaps;)
That brings us to the current week...this week has been really wonderful!  I have been working out a lot more and setting a goal to run several 5K's this fall.  While I've been diligent in getting to the gym, I haven't always felt like I was improving.  Today I finally ran the entire 5K-in 36 minutes.  It was such a feeling of accomplishment and I can't wait to do it again!  Next goal-1/2 marathon.  Bring it on.  I am so thrilled that I have this outlet where I can push myself, and work on discipline and long-term goals.  I really believe it is making me a better person and I know it is improving my health.
At home this week we have been tackling the black hole that is know as the basement.  This has been on the to-do list forever, and we made so much headway this week.  It's no longer impossible to access our storage area without tripping and doing laundry is a much more pleasant experience.  Can't wait to wrap up this project and feel like our house is finally in order from top to bottom!
Another highlight of the week was that I had the opportunity to record a song for a producer nearby!!  Several months ago I sang back-up vocals for a band's CD, and the producer liked my voice.  He and his friend write songs and have a connection in LA, so they were needing to make demo's to send out as potential songs for their contact to purchase.  It's not a huge deal, but it was a really fun experience and I'm hoping I get to do it again soon.  Making music is a great thing and it really excites me!
Today was the best day of our week-FAMILY DAY:)  It's great to know that no matter what may be going on in life that is frustrating, you can have a day completely devoted to family time, which quickly snaps things back into perspective.  Luke, Whit and I met my mom in Bloomington for lunch at Monical's-yum!  After that, the three of us headed to Miller Park Zoo for the afternoon.  It was the perfect zoo for a hot summer day!  We got through all the exhibits and Whit seemed to really enjoy the animals  In the rainforest exhibit he got really close to lots of interesting birds (fun pictures to come), but I think his favorite place was the petting zoo.  Once he got his little hands on the goats, there was no letting go!  We hit up a few stores on the way home and then had a relaxing night of nothing...it was the perfect end to a great week!
Glad to be caught up on life and I promise not to be so long winded next time!!

I Love Summer!

This summer has been so great!  We have had so much time together as a family.  It is such a blessing to have jobs we truly enjoy; jobs that provide us a comfortable life and give us the opportunity to give generously; jobs which allow us the opportunity to take two and a half months off every year to be a family.  It is truly amazing!  We feel so grateful we get to be with Whit this summer (and Lucy.)  This week Luke was gone on a trip with his music rep from school, so Whit and I headed to the pool for his first swimming outing.  Thursday we visited the Dwight pool with my friend Kristina and her three kiddos, then Friday we headed to Minooka to visit Sarah's pool.  Although Whit was a little unsure at first, he quickly warmed up the water and really enjoyed our visits. I can't wait to get his little pool up and running so he can enjoy it every day!  I hope watching him experience things for the first time never grows old!

Whit was ready for a swim!

He loves his ridiculous floatie!  It is hilarious!

Mommy and Whit 

Whit's World

So, I thought it would be fun to make a note of some of the fun things happening with Whit these days. It seems like everyday he is doing something new and melting our hearts! We absolutely adore this little boy and we are so grateful God has blessed us with such a joyful little boy:) We try so hard to not take his wonderful spirit for granted. This summer has been wonderful and I look forward to our family time throughout the years when summer rolls around!
Here are some of Whit's "tricks"
-Crawling ALL OVER!
-Hand/Eye Coordination is improving
-Signing "more" and "all done"
-Waving "hi" and "bye"
-His smile is wider now; it used to be a big "open-mouth" smile
-He's starting to pick up on when we're laughing at him...when he notices, he throws his head back and giggles
-He's sooooo ticklish! Just like his mommy!
-Getting pretty skilled at the walker-he can get from the living room to the kitchen...always working to get to Lucy's food!
-He LOVES bathtime!
-When we put him down, he rolls onto his tummey, sticks his booty in the air, and tucks his hands under his tummy. It's adorable!
-He's sporting three teeth now! Two on the bottom and one on the top

We are on vacation!

I LOVE vacation!  This year we headed north for a summer getaway.  We started the week of fun with George and Miakea at the Botanical Gardens.  We had a great day with them and their friends (now our friends:)) Young and Renee Song.  It was a wonderful start to our vacation!

Next we headed to Door County for a week with the Windhams.  We had a wonderful, relaxing time enjoying the little towns on the lake, taking in the beautiful scenery, and eating way to much great food!  It was a great week of family!  A few of the highlights were...

• An AMAZING house right on the lake-Way to go Miriam!!
• Whit's first boat ride
• Awesome dinner with the family in Sturgeon Bay
• Lots of yummy Wisconsin Cheese
• Enjoying the vineyards
• A fun date afternoon with Luke

It was a great getaway, and we were so grateful to have time with Miriam, Neal, Joe & Charis.  We are blessed to have such a WONDERFUL family! This was a week full of wonderful memories and such a great start to our summer!

We finished up our week with more family time to celebrate father's day-this time with my parents, and Nate, Rachelle, Kaden and Carder.  We had lots to celebrate!!  3 great dads and Nate's birthday:)  

A Day of Firsts...not one I want to remember

Saturday, June 5 was not a great day for the Windhams. Luke was home in the am with Whit while I attended a business meeting, and he called to inform me that Whit had thrown up while in his walker-apparently it was a bit of a mess. This was his first time getting sick, and I have to say I wasn't disappointed I missed it...he did however manage to have another incident just before bed as I was holding him, so I got to share in Luke's experience for the day. By the time he was clean and in bed, and I was clean and sitting down for a few minutes, I checked my phone to learn that tornados were nearby...a friend had texted and my mom had called to see if we were OK. I quickly turned on the TV to learn that the tornado was expected to hit Dwight in 20 minutes!! The siren went off a minute later and we quickly woke Whit up and headed for the basement. We had nearly an hour of waiting with no power and lots of rain, wind, and sirens...lots of frantic text messages back and forth with friends and family until we got word around 11:30 that everything was OK. We put Whit down and sat on the porch for a bit before heading to bed for the night. Needless to say, it was not a great day. Just two blocks south of our home, the tornado flattened a trailer park, several businesses, ripped through the ball fields, damaged a church, the high school, and several more homes before leaving town. We feel so grateful that our home was spared and no life was lost. Certainly not the start to our summer we had anticipated. Hopefully the next day of "firsts" will be full of happier memories!

Toubekis Wedding!

Miakea and I getting ready:)  You think she looks good now, wait to you see her in THE DRESS!

Yes-she was STUNNING!  

Jen, me and Kim riding to the reception

Luke and I after the ceremony

Toubekis Wedding

This weekend we headed to Arlington Heights to celebrate Miakea & George! Whit stayed with Uncle Joe and Aunt Charis so Luke and I could be focused on the lovely bride and groom. We had a wonderful weekend with them! The wedding was at the most charming little white church in Longrove, followed by an awesome reception with great friends, yummy food, & a lot of dancing! Love is in the details, and they were abundant this weekend. So so so happy for my beautiful best friend and her new hubby! Can't wait to reflect on this awesome day and look forward to many fun times ahead with the Mr. & Mrs. George Toubekis! Here are a few pictures...

Showing off his new crawling skills