Warning: About to dump

Our spring and summer outdid itself to keep us on our feet, entertained, surrounded by loved ones, challenged physically and emotionally, in excruciating pain, relieved of excruciating pain, jetlagged, up early, up late, laughing, crying, taking pictures, and raising our boys. Fall has crept in with its characteristic peace filtering into the nooks and crannies of my heart. I love the attic fan on, windows open, oven baking, apples falling, and dark evenings. My heart is tucked into a still place surrounded by chaos, fighting for the upside against the seasonal shadow that comes in August like the school bell that calls all indoors. I don't know why my favorite season always comes with a weight, but I press on for the warmth of sunlight to soak in instead. God can beat this. 

My three little rogues have started calming down a bit after our mega-marathon. Jack is sleeping through some nights again which is a huge improvement. (The two nights following writing this part of  the post Jack woke up. I almost deleted the last sentence just to stop him from doing it tonight!) One night about a month ago, Jon and I were up 10 times between the three kids. One can only handle so many nights of panicked interrupted sleep. I think the kids coordinate their "disturbances" schedules sometimes. Anyhow, for obvious reasons, one solid sleep-through-the-nighter would be welcome on my team. London and Blake are back down to 1-2 times each, so I feel hopeful that we can all sleep better soon!

We had a period this summer where Blake and London were temporarily in the same size clothing. Reminded me how much I love my little imp of a middle child, and how hard Blake is trying to catch up to the toddlers. Jack is still trying to decide if he wants to turn 4 or 7 in six months. I hope he'll pick 4.

I think I will just dump a deluge of pictures now and stop letting my mind wander. 

Happy Birthday, Jon!

Happy Birthday, London!

Happy Father's Day, Jon!

Happy 40th Anniversary, Mom and Dad!

They have been married 90% longer than us.

London's birthday gift. Turtle caught pneumonia, London caught salmonella, Petsmart caught a returned turtle. 

London shared everything equally with Jack his whole birthday. Jack didn't mind. He told people that London got rocks and that he (Jack) got a turtle. 

Jack gets the best, longest, biggest smiles from sober sides.

While Jack gets the most enthusiastic welcome from Blake, London gets the most interaction. Blake has figured out who to go to for a sneak snack, returned soother, or surrendered toy.

After Taiwan, Jon missed the scooters a lot. We added the little zip in June to our small family fleet. It has earned a respected place though. It clocks in at a tidy 55 mph, gets 5 times better gas than the van, affords precious thinking time on your way somewhere, a fresh spin on date nights, and someone told me I was "spicy" after hearing my "accent" (I have secretly always known I had a funny speech impediment) and seeing our scooter. Seriously though, it has shaved about $100 off of our gas bill every month, at this rate it will pay itself off in 2 more months and start saving us money! A cool side effect to driving a scooter is feeling more connected to the world while commuting. You feel warm spots and sudden cold spots in valleys, people smile and wave at stoplights, and skipping the highway makes life seem slower and closer to home.

It is also a fun way to take the boys out for a special one on one time.

Emma time!

Happy 4th of July!

Uncle Rat pulled into town for a spell. The boys still ask multiple times a week if he is coming back "today." We hope it will be soon!

London likes to work. We have to stop him from wiping up spills in public bathrooms, picking up every piece of trash he crosses in a parking lot, and other public service acts. I admire his concern, but sanitation, time, and safety have their own demands.

Papa T and Nona got to meet Blake and visited for a super long and fabulous visit. They came during the worst of my back pain this summer and helped with the boys, food shopping for MTTC, and around our house. I was sorry to see them go when the time came.

Mahaffie Farmstead!

City Market!

We love our Caffrey family

MTTC team

The Intern Team. Last year we had the privilege of meeting with these 8 college interns at church. They planned a 9 day mission to the city adventure that served parts of our church and community, sharing the Gospel and practical help. They ended the week with a 5k to raise money for the local crisis pregnancy center. I was so proud of them for pressing through extremely challenging times. 

I know she loves us. This Sarah brought us homemade tiramisu, it was the most delicious memory of my summer.

This pretty much is his standard face. I love it. So frank and somewhat pathetic. 

Nathe, Treen, and Lily arrived 10 days after MTTC! Such a happy reunion.

Born the same day, but so many differences. This was worth tickets to watch.

They got so wet we just bought new outfits to go home in.

Ever heard of overstimulation? ;) Actually, Nathe and Treen are both stellar with the boys.

I love and miss this munch so much. She is the epitome of easy and drinks everything in around her. I love the way she leans into life.

Music practice for church

Group living is great. Of course, she only has one on one with her kid, I usually have three on one...I wonder if she loved it as much?

I am pretty sure I rocked that tall boy on that swing just like that in bygone years...but I have never had his tan.

In 5 years she can babysit for me. Or come live in nanny for me.

This one is for you, Nona.

Happy Birthday, Bop!

Blake met Great-Granny on the way to Canada. We got to see her new house and have lunch with her and Aunt Sandy.

Was he singing off key Lily?

Sweet Hannah holds the new Taylor. 

Papa Aszbach had a party to celebrate his pastoring Grace church the last Sunday he preached.

Um, GT sledding behind a mower...in the rain.

Possibly my favorite picture of the entire summer. I really miss this Treen.

Lily loves yogurt. Really she does.

Great Grandma Taylor treated us to the Medieval Times. Our boys have been playing sword fight ever since with anything longer than a toothpick.

This brings us to September where we had to say goodbye to our New Zealand and Canada family for a while. So looking forward to seeing you all again!

If you have stuck with this post long enough to be reading this sentence, I hearby knight you a Taylor family junkie...it turned out a little longer than I originally set out to blog. I promise catching up on the last six weeks will be shorter.