Nerds.....

I admit, I've always had a special admiration for people whom might be labeled as one. Check out this video on the CERN accelerator made by some nerdy physicists. SO creative!

The Tooth Fairy

The tooth fairy will be visiting us tonight because Olivia lost her 2nd top front tooth! We are at Grandma & Grandpa's house....(it fell out in the car on the ride here)....and all my children know that the tooth fairy pays more money for teeth when you are at Grandma & Grandpa's house. *wink*

All the kids are sleeping in one room here. At home the 3 oldest kids sleep in one room together & we've tried to add Gabrielle into the mix, and it hasn't really worked yet except for one night when it was storming out. It was lightning & thundering & Gabi is SO afraid of lightning & thunder that she hid under her blanket, & fell asleep with her big sister Olivia for the night. When Gabi's in the room with her older siblings she gets very excited & doesn't want to fall asleep! Tonight, the kids really want to be quiet to see the tooth fairy so Vianne reminded Gabi to "be quiet, otherwise the tooth fairy will never ever come ever again!" I said, "Yup! And we still have many teeth to loose & a lot of money to be made!" Then Oscar said "Ohhhhh! I get it now......that's where money comes from!"

So sweet.....or as Olivia now says "tho thweet" (;

p.s. for those of you who want an update on Levin, he's doing great! He didn't cry a single time on our whole trip here. He reminds me so much of Olivia when she was a baby because he looks so much like she did. It's as if he's a boy version of her (: Oh, how I just love & adore babies.....once your other children get a little older you realize how easy babies are to care for! Sling them, (my favorite carrier for very little ones), change diapers, take them to the potty , (or sink), change clothes, bathe them, hold them, sing to them, stare at them, hug & kiss them, and my most favorite - the best of all - nurse them! I just LOVE nursing!

Take care ya'll & have a great week!

jennifer j. s.

Happy 30th Birthday!

.......to my husband John Paul Shingledecker. Born 9.2.78.

I love you!

Levin Augustine Shingledecker

Born on August 19th, 2008 at 4:23 am, weighing 7 lbs 3 oz., and 20" long.

Here we are with the birthday cake! John made a vanilla & chocolate marble cake with vanilla buttercream frosting, decorated with blue icing, mini chocolate chips, & 5 candles (one for each of our children). Although I had time to make the cake during my labor with Levin, I wasn't as ambitious as I was when I made the cake at 11 pm while in labor with Vianne who was born a few hours later at 3:57 am. John & the kids had fun making and decorating it together! He went all out and made a delicious tiered wonder! Mama & the 5 little Shingledeckers. Pure Joy.

It's our Anniversary!

August 16th, 2002 my dear husband & I got married in the beautiful Upper Peninsula Michigan at our University Parish, St. Albert the Great, in Houghton (pronounced "Ho-tun" - think: Upper (Yooper) Accent = thick Canadian/Finnish/Northern accent) where we met.

We had a nice day with our little family. We have been taking the kids to the local YMCA park a few times in the past couple weeks so that John can give them a tennis lesson! They had their 3rd lesson this morning. I'm so happy that John can share his great gift & talent of playing tennis with our children.

Here are a few pics:

Two days ago when we announced it's going to be our wedding anniversary the kids asked if they could make us gifts. I said 'sure! but you know.....you children are the biggest gift of our marriage'. God certainly has blessed us with a fruitful marriage (; The kids gave us their gifts of drawings tonight & they were so happy & proud to share them! Vianne was especially happy to have drawn her mama, papa, & herself....which is only about the 3rd time she has drawn 'people'.

I'll sign off with this quote:

"Mankind's future rests in, and depends upon, the family more than any other society, institution, or environment. " Pope John Paul II

+JMJ+ pray for us