Our Little Basketball Star

Joseph's parents have a little basketball goal that Austin finally got some use out of this weekend. He did a good job getting the ball into the basket.

The second video shows how our little basketball prodigy still has the attention span of a two year old. He can dribble though, which is really cool.

Always Working, Even on Vacation

One of Austin's favorite activities this past weekend in Tennessee was sweeping the leaves on Grandma's driveway. Such a busy little boy. I think Grandma may put him to work in the yard this summer.

Four Day Weekend in Tennessee

Austin got to walk on the treadmill with his Grandma.

Ralph is an amazing cook. We always look forward to his yummy grilled food. Little did we know when this picture was taken that there was a water leak in their front yard. We found that out after the food was cooked. I doubt Ralph would have looked so calm had he known what kind of clean-up was coming his way. He and Joseph spent several hours that afternoon wallowing in the mud and ice cold water. They weren't able to fix it, but they did alot of the prep work for the plumber who came the next day. Living without running water for a day sure reminded me of being in Nicaragua. It was a good reminder to be thankful for the little things we take for granted.

Pork Chops, Chicken, Tenderloin and Baked Potatoes. Yum Yum.

Emily enjoying the 50 degree weather we had on Sunday after suffering with the freeze on Thursday-Saturday.

Taking a Family Picture

Daddy, let me straighten your tie...

Why do you need to wear this anyways?

Finally, we are all looking at the camera.

Matt and Kristen- Engaged!!

Joseph's brother and his new fiance. Congratulations!!Such a sweet couple. I honestly had no idea that these two were getting engaged on the very day that I made this blog post. I will get getting a new sister-in-law in seven months. Yay!

Look at Austin Getting Sleepy

You can tell that Austin is getting more sleepy by the minute as we wait for the wedding to begin.

Pay close attention to Austin's eyes.

A Wedding in October

Back in October, Joseph's sister Sonya became a married woman. The next few posts will highlight pictures from the happy wedding day.

Joseph's Family-
His three brothers (Perry, Brian and Matt) are in the back, and his two sisters are the Bride and her Bridesmaid (Sonya and Jackie). His parents are to the right of the Bride. The rest of us are significant others and our children.

A sweet family moment caught on camera.

Emily's Family- The Beckmans

This post is dedicated to the Beckman side of the family.


Christmas 06- My three siblings with Joseph, Austin and Myself

My sister, Jane

My Dad

My Mom with Austin at around 9 months old

My siblings with Austin at around 11 months old

My Grandma with Austin at around 18 months

Joseph's Family- The Goulds

This post is dedicated to the Gould side of the family.


Ralph and Austin in the NICU


Donna and Austin around 7 months

Ralph and Donna with Austin at around 8 months

Joseph's sister, Jackie with Donna and Austin

Joseph's Grandma with Austin at 15 months old

Joseph's brother, Matt and Austin at 17 months

Ralph and Donna with a two year old Austin

Papa and Austin

Fourth of July Vacation

We had beautiful weather in Tennessee and were able to use the pool at Joseph's parents house. Austin was nervous at first, but he really enjoyed it after a few times. Here is a video of him playing in the pool with a little background commentary by his Grandma.

Austin played so hard, he crawled up into this rocking chair and fell asleep.

Aunt Jane is in Town

Memorial Day Weekend

Austin had a big time playing in the yard at his Grandparents house. He had a whole new world to explore. Enjoy some of these pictures from our trip.

Many of you probably think this is one of Austin's aunts... nope, it's his Grandma.

Look closely and you may catch a glimpse of Austin and his Grandpa on a Bulldozer.

My Mom again and my youngest sister.

My youngest brother showing Austin a tractor.

I didn't get any pictures of my other younger sister. However, since she is coming to stay with us for a few weeks this summer, you should see some pictures of her in coming posts.

By the way, Austin is 24 pounds now. He is saying about 10 intelligible words in the midst of his unceasing chatter. Overall, he is doing very well and has become quite a charmer... Has he charmed you yet?

Grandmother Elder

I am sad to say that my Great Grandmother Elder has died. She lived to the age of 94. We will be traveling this weekend for the funeral and to be with family. I wanted to post a few pictures of her from last summer. We were able to get some pictures of her with Austin, which is very nice. Not very many people can say they have met their Great Great Grandmother.Austin, Myself, Grandmother Elder, Grandma Pat

Austin, Myself, Grandmother, My brother Ben

Austin, Myself, Grandmother

Grandmother

Grandmother lived in Louisville during the great flood of 1937. See below for a story I wrote back in 2005 after a visit with her.

The Great Flood of 1937

My grandma was only 13 days old when Great- Grandmother and Granddaddy Elder moved to Louisville. It all happened in 1937. (can you imagine being in your twenties back then?) From what I understand, the flood happened soon after they moved. My Great Great Grandparents lived up on a hill somewhere downtown, I think. They had a little house at the bottom of the hill that was going to be flooded, so they laid some rugs down on the floor so that they could move their furniture. Well, the water rose so fast that they couldn't get the furniture out. Grandmother said that they found the rugs stuck to the ceiling when it was all over and done with. Someone she knew took a boat all the way from Louisville to Owensboro, KY. It sounds like this was pretty comparable to the New Orleans flood. The Ohio River overflowed and covered the whole city with water. It was neat hearing a first-hand account of this historic event.

The Great Flood of 1937, seen from Old Louisville's Confederate Monument.
This view is over three miles from the banks of the Ohio River, on what
was once considered high ground. Modern levees and flood walls hopefully ensure
that this will not happen again.

Visit from Great Grandma

Austin had a special visit this weekend from his Great Grandma Vantol.

He had a blast knocking over his new blocks as she stacked them into towers.

Austin, say cheese!

This is a four generation picture. If Austin's Great Great Grandma Sager were able to travel, we would have had five generations under one roof. Amazing, isn't it! (Can you see the family resemblance in this picture? If only I had grown a few more inches...)

Christmas in TN

We spent part of our Christmas visiting with Joseph's grandma and family. Do you think this picture has enough orange?

This is my brother Ben. He is growing into such a good looking young man.

Family Reunion

A few weeks ago, we loaded up and went to IL for the big Elder Reunion. Here is a picture of me, Austin, and my Mom.


This is Austin's Great Great Grandmother. She is 93 years old and doing great!

Meet Austin's Great Grandma Pat and Great Papa Wayne. It was so nice to see everyone at the reunion. They were all very surprised at how big Austin was. I guess they expected him to look like a preemie.

By the way, Austin had his nine month checkup last week. He weighed 17 pounds 10 ounces and was 27 inches long. That puts him in the 10th percentile for his age. Good job Austin!