Happy Anniversary!

Today marks 14 years for Chuck and I. These have been 14 years of happiness, struggle, growth, and change. I wouldn't have changed a moment of it. Growing up, I had some pretty fantastic role models of what a good marriage should look like. I often wondered if I would be able to find a husband that could live up to the high standard that my dad set. I knew how I wanted my life to look and I knew how I wanted to be treated and I knew what kind of father I wanted for my children. What I didn't know was how to find that guy. I won't lie...it was pretty rough in those high school and college days. I did very little dating and when I did date, those guys did not live up to the expectations. Of course, when you are growing up, you feel like it is never going to happen for you...and for sure I felt that way. Then, one day, a friend of my mom wanted to fix me up on a blind date. I agreed. I can definitely say that meeting Chuck wasn't love at first sight for either of us...in fact, I don't know how we ever made it to a second date! Now, if you know Chuck at all, you probably wouldn't believe me if I told you that he didn't say more than a handful of words on our first several dates...it was pure torture, but I loved spending time with his family and I had a very short conversation with my dad that made all the difference. I can clearly remember my dad saying to me, "I think you should give this one a chance...I think he is a good guy and he might be 'the one.'" Well, I didn't think he was right, but I respected my dad's opinion and so, I went out with Chuck again when he asked. All I can tell you is that looking back now, I am sure glad that I did!

I am lucky enough to say that my husband is a good man. He treats me with so much love, compassion and respect (even when I don't deserve it). He is an awesome father to our children and he puts our family above himself at all times. Chuck is without a doubt my very best friend. There isn't anything about me that he doesn't know...and we can tell each other everything. He knows the good, the bad, and the ugly about me...and loves me anyway. I feel so blessed to have him in my life and we have done so much growing together. Time has only strengthened and enriched our love together. As we grow and mature, so does our relationship. I feel like we are so much more purposeful about how we are growing our family. We now know that no amount of money can buy happiness, a bigger car won't make life any richer, and a huge home won't ensure smooth sailing. We have also learned that family is most important, and that we are lucky enough to be blessed with amazing parents who are always there for us. We know now that good friends are there for you in thick and thin, they laugh with you, cry with you, love you when you aren't at your best, and spend time with you even when your house is messy. We now know that we want to live a life of faith and we want our children to have that faith. We now pray for their future spouses and we have a dream of the life that God has in store for them.

Chuck, you ARE my life...you make every day happier and I feel safe and secure in your presence. Thank you for 14 wonderul years! I can't wait to continue our journey together and see what else life has in store for us. Love you!

Thankful 2010

I am so thankful for the blessings in my life....those in the picture above and so many more!

Halloween 2010

Well, Halloween 2010 brought about a big change for our family. This year Brock was in sixth grade and he officially deemed himself too old to go trick-or-treating. I have to admit that I wasn't quite ready for that! So, this year he chose to go to dinner at Takaoka with my parents while we took Kenzie trick-or-treating. I know he had a great time, so I guess it was all good. Kenzie had been pretty low key about the costume thing this year, and several days before Halloween she said she wanted to be a football player. Well, that was easy enough! We went to Willshire, as we always do, to go trick-or-treating with cousins. It was a windy, but beautiful day and the kids all had fun. Afterwards, we enjoyed soup and snacks at Cindy's house and then we all went to the festival at the park and watched our nieces perform with the band. We finished the evening by picking up Brock and then we went to the Chile's house to watch the Buckeye's game. It was a great Halloween!

Daddy taped her up and got her looking "tough."

Our niece Bailey. Love those missing teeth!

Kenzie and Bailey before heading out to get some candy.

Jared...ready to get going!

Our little Cougar! Love it!

Grace, Kenzie, Bailey, and Jared. They really had a good time!

Our niece Maddie, Grandma Cindy, and Maddie's BFF, Liz.

Maddie and Liz - the vampire girl and gypsy.

Our two oldest nieces are in the drumline for Parkway's band. The drumline decided to go as gnomes. Alyssa decided not to go, but Amber is the last gnome in the blue plaid shirt. I thought it was a cute idea and they seemed to have a great time.

Stitches

On Halloween weekend Brock had a little injury at the football game. I had gone with my mom, Kenzie, and one of her little friends to Lima and the boys had gone to the last Cougar football game. As we were walking out of the mall, my phone rang and Chuck said, "Um, we have a little problem....we are on our way to the ER." Brock had fallen when he was "walking" up the stairs and cut his lip open. I asked him later if he was running and he said, "not really, I was just walking really fast." Ooooookkkkkaaayyy. LOL! Anyway, here are a couple of pictures so we don't forget Brock's first stitches.

Taylor Senior

Oh my goodness! Taylor's mom had asked me awhile ago about taking her senior pictures and I said I would be glad to. I had no idea how much fun we were going to have. Taylor was so laid back and easy going and she was up for trying anything. Her mom came along and made it so much fun for all of us. Taylor was gorgeous and so easy to photograph and I really was pleased with how her shots turned out. Thanks Taylor and Leslie for letting me share a fun afternoon with you!

Another Season in the Books

Brock's team wrapped up their regular season by playing in the finals under the lights. The game between Van Wert White and Elida Rebels was hard fought. These were two great teams and it was quite a match up. They held each other scoreless until the fourth quarter when Van Wert made it to the endzone. Then the Rebels answered back with a touchdown. The score was 6-6 as the clock ticked down to zero. We were in overtime! The Van Wert White team was able to score, but missed their extra point attempt. Next, the Rebels scored and got the extra point to end the game at 12-13 in favor of the Rebels. These boys had nothing to be ashamed of and we were proud of them all! Now we are looking forward to the all star tourney in Troy. I have learned this year that I need to work on my sports photography...I CAN NOT GET GOOD SHOTS at these games! Oh well, the only thing that matters is that it has been documented.

He is number 29...the only good shots I could get were when he was standing still! Ha!

A disappointed Brock gets a pat on the back from Dad. It was a tough loss to take.

They look devastated...just tells you how seriously they took this game.

Brock getting his medal.

Brock with "Coach Berry" aka "Dad." I think Brock will always remember and appreciate all of the time his dad gave to coaching his sports teams. I love that about Chuck.

Chuck, with the kids (yes, we include Cade as one of our kids!).

Brock and Cade...these two are like brothers...tried and true friends. I am so glad for their friendship. Cade was also the ball boy for the last two games of the season.

Our favorite Van Wert White player of all time. Brock, we love you and we are so proud of your improvements this year. You were so much more dedicated to the game this season and it paid off for you. It was so much fun to watch you play and grow throughout the season! Looking forward to watching you play in Troy. Love ya!