Catching Up

So, I'm not gonna lie and claim I haven't fallen off the wagon with this whole blogging thing. It's become one of the last priorities on my to-do list and something that feels more like an obligation than fun to me during this season of life. But, since I want to use my blog as a sort of "scrapbook" of our life, I want to try and do better...I NEED to do better. Can't make any promises but I'll try. :)

There's so much that's happened since I last blogged and many, many, many pictures to post. Gonna take it one day at a time and hopefully get caught up soon! To start, here's some pictures from the end of Summer/beginning of Fall (yes, it's been THAT long).

Asher hung out with his Uncle Drew and Uncle Derek before they headed back to school. They are such fun uncles and he loves them!

We hit up America the Beautiful Park a few times this summer - this was our last time there before they shut off the fountain for the Fall. Such a fun, free place to play!

You can't live in Colorado Springs and not hit up the Balloon Glow in Memorial Park over Labor Day Weekend!

Asher was enthralled by all the balloons -

My BFF Brook moved here during the Summer and it's been so fun to have her tag along with us on our outings. She really is like part of our family and Asher adores her SO much!

We celebrated our 4-Year Anniversary on September 3rd with dinner at the Melting Pot..mmm.
Heading out for dinner -

Awkward pictures in front of the restaurant because no one was around to take them for us :)

Dessert there is incredible!

My Grandpa Harold passed away in mid-September and we headed up to Minnesota for the funeral. It was a sad, but special time of remembering his incredible life and ministry. He was such a man of God and devoted his whole life to serving the Lord and others. It is comforting to know he is in Heaven with the Jesus he loved so much!
While we were in MN we had a BBQ at our good friends' Jason and Lisa Rovenstine's house. It was the perfect way to end an emotional weekend.

Asher had a great time jumping on the trampoline with Uncle Derek

And he especially loved riding this Jeep around in a huge field with his cousin Azura. She showed him how it's done...

Just a boy and his Jeep!

It was a mini-reunion in MN as I saw dear friends that I haven't seen in years. These girls were pretty much like my big sisters growing up and I've known them since I was a baby. So fun to get all our families together and catch up!

There you go, a long update! Hoping to post pictures from our trip to Breckenridge and the Pumpkin Patch later this week...

A Great Loss

My Grandpa Harold went to be with Jesus last night. He was an incredible man of God who impacted so many lives through his life and ministry. I'm so thankful that we got to see him and spend some time with him in August. My grandma and he just celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary a week ago today...what a beautiful marriage they had. We will miss him dearly but know He is with his precious Savior in Heaven and I look forward to seeing him again someday. I love you, Grandpa!

Finzel Family Vacation 2009

We headed to Crested Butte with Mark's family at the end of August for our yearly summer vacation. That little mountain town is so fun and beautiful. We had a blast relaxing, hiking, eating lots of yummy food, playing games and shopping around the downtown area. There are way too many pictures for me to post on my blog, so click HERE to see the entire album I uploaded to Facebook.

Here are just a couple to show the beauty of where we were -

Bubba & His Tractor

Drive a tractor...that's what you do when you're in Arkansas. :)

Where to Begin?? Arkansas, I guess.

So, been feeling overwhelmed by all the updating that needs to happen from this past month, two family vacations, wedding anniversary, lots of weekend activities and fun with friends. I'm having a hard time keeping up with blogging, emails and facebook....sheesh. When did life get so complicated? :) My solution has been to avoid it all, but that won't work for forever. So, here you go, pictures from our trip to Arkansas at the beginning of August. Only a month late!

On the road:
Uncle Derek sleeping and bubba NOT sleeping. Why is my child the only one that doesn't sleep in the car?

Asher and sweet cousin Azura giving hugs before bedtime

We went to Arkansas to celebrate my Grandma Leetch's 80th Birthday. She is an incredible wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, friend, counselor, mentor and woman of God. It was so special to celebrate her!
My grandma Leola with her daughters, my Aunt Deanna and my mom.

I love you, Grandma!

My awesome aunt Deanna...seriously, such an inspiration to me.

My Grandpa and Grandma Brokke also came in for the party and it was SO great to see them. They hadn't seen Asher since he was 2 months old so it was special for us all to be together. They are actually celebrating their 60th wedding anniversary TODAY...their lives and marriage are such a beautiful example of Christ and his love for us. What incredible people they are.
My beautiful Grandma Cathy!

Couldn't pass up the opportunity to get a family shot...

We also decided to take all-family pictures while we were there. Have I ever said how much I love my family? They are awesome.

Really, they are. :)

So, I'm gonna try and keep on top of this blogging thing a little better....I may even get in another post this week! No promises though. :)

Memorial Park with Mandy

We headed to Memorial Park this morning for a walk/playtime with my BF Mandy and her girls, Avery and Ashton. It was such a nice cloudy, cool morning to walk around the lake and chat. Afterwards the kids burned some energy on the playground before heading home for lunch (and a 3 hour nap....yay Asher!). Because I'm SO horrible at remembering my camera and actually taking pictures of our lives, click here to see the pics that Mandy posted. (Thanks Mandrea!:))

There's something so nice about spending time with an old friend, one who's known you since you were 14...and still loves you. So comforting and reassuring to be walking through the same stage of life together. Love you Mands!

New Kitchen

For the past couple months we've been eyeing this kitchen and wanting to get it for Asher man. Our good friends have the exact same one and every time we are at their house he heads straight for the kitchen set and plays with it the WHOLE time. He loves it. Well, we finally bought one this week and Mark worked all evening/night to get it set up for our bubba!
Such a good dad

When we brought Asher down the next morning, he immediately spotted it and yelled "that" and ran over to it with a huge smile on his face. He was SO excited...it was precious.

Talking on his new cell phone:

So happy!

Yay for new toys that provide hours of entertainment!!:)