Fall is always a busy time in our home, and this year was no exception. Weekdays are packed with school, homework, and squeezing in the last bits of warmth and sunshine in the evenings. Weekends are filled with yardwork, football games, and quality time as a family. We love the feeling of settling into a routine, but definitely miss the freedom of summer!
Our favorite baseball team, the Slammers, made it to the playoffs and we were excited to be able to cheer them on in their final games. They ended up winning the whole tournament, but sadly, they were out of town during that victory.
We love the revolving door of friends that come to hang after school and on the weekends. The Sturm kids are lucky to have such great friends. Joel is especially thankful for Caleb's friends who get excited about helping him during homework time!
Mom's weeks are filled with a couple days of kid-freedom, mixed in with a few days of babysitting two of the sweetest little boys. On the days off, a lot of time is spent volunteering at school, running errands, and occasionally subbing. The days with the boys are exhausting and a good reminder of how thankful I am to not have little ones 24/7 anymore!
We hosted our annual chili cookoff. We had BEAUTIFUL weather and the house was filled with many of our favorite family members and friends. It was a blast and everyone had a great time!
Our garden provided an abundance of good veggies this year. Tyler definitely loves taking care of the garden and his interest is being passed on to the kids. Joel got a pumpkin seed last spring in kindergarten and couldn't wait to plant it. We didn't have much room left in our garden, so Grandpa and Grandma planted it in their garden. We got regular updates and stopped by to see it quite often. In the end, Joel was ecstatic to have a pumpkin!
Tyler and Caleb took a special one-on-one camping trip to a local campsite. They had a great time and did some major bonding. It's hard to believe this boy is already nearing age 11!!!
Joel spent weeks trying to wiggle his top tooth out. It finally came out and his first grade smile is just about as cute as it could be!
We took our annual trip down to Champaign to tailgate and spend some quality time with family. The kids had a blast hanging out with their cousins. The tailgate was cold, but we still had fun. We also loved walking around campus and heading to Curtis Orchard the next day.
