Our Mini Vacation...

We decided that Olivia deserved a little vacation of her own since Jacob is gone on his wonderful South Carolina vacation with his Nana and Papa. So, today we took Olivia to the zoo! This is her first trip to the zoo and she loved every minute! She squealed through the entire dolphin show and walked all over the place. We can't wait to go back with Jacob after he returns!

Trying to wait patiently for the train to come... they only had one running on such a busy day!

She loved the baby Kodiak Bears, but she thought they smelled bad! (She was right!)

Riding on the gorilla!

Liv and Daddy waiting to see the elephant get a bath!

Olivia loved talking to the roosters!

Take Me Out to the Ball Game

Today we decided to take advantage of the nice day and get the kids out of the house. We decided that we would go to the Indians game! We had a great time, even though it started to rain right before the game was to start. It stopped pretty quickly and the rest of the days weather was beautiful. Today was a freebie day too and we all were given an Indian's baseball hat! We are warn out, but enjoyed the time together as a family.

Mommy and her kids!

Daddy and the kids!

Jake was having a great time!



Olivia being a ham!

Mom for the Day

I got to be a mommy for the day on Friday and went with Jake and his crazy first grade class to Eagle Creek Park! We had a great day of learning about plants and animals. We went on a nature hike and made a habitat with a millipede (which we brought home!). We also learned about reptiles and amphibians (where we were able to touch them!) and we saw birds of prey up close! We also were able to visit with our friend Carrie, who used to work with Daddy at the zoo. It was a WARM day, but we had lots of fun!

Jake's 8th Birthday!

Today we had Jake's 8th birthday party at the bowling alley. There were ten boy (YIKES!) but they had a great time.

Here is Jake with all his buddies! Most of them are in his class at school.

Jake in the process of blowing out the candles on his cupcakes!


Even though everyone thought I was CRAZY, I thought that the black frosting (which actually looks a little purple in this picture) turned out great! They also were not as messy as everyone thought they would be. (P.S. the big glob on the front of this one was candle wax!)

Another shot of the boys having fun--eating pizza and drinking pop!

And of course--you can't have a party without presents! He was just a little excited about this one! :)

Auntie Beth Graduates!

We are proud to announce that Auntie Beth (and my sister) has officially graduated from college! She went through commencement on Saturday, May 2 from Saint Mary of the Woods in Terre Haute with her degree in Elementary Education. I guess you could say that I taught my big sister everything she knows when it comes to being a teacher. :) Congrats Beth!

Beds for Birthdays!

This year the birthday presents have been about beds! Jake was lucky enough to have his Nana and Papa and his Great Grandpa buy him a new bunk bed and mattresses for his 8th birthday!(which is in a couple of weeks) As you can see, he is a happy boy! Then, with him getting his new bunk beds, Olivia moved from her toddler bed into a twin bed with new comforter and sheets and all the trimmings. She is excited about being a big girl!

Family Time!

I must brag... We are just the cutest matching family! The funny thing is that Chris and I didn't intend on matching!
The Lawson Family. Olivia, 3, Chris, Megan and Jake, 8. (Well almost 3 and 8)
The Bielefeld Family. Emily, 16, Beth, Chris and Allison, 18.

The Lawson, Bielefeld and Nietzel kids.