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"a portrait of one, two, or all three of my children - once each week - in 2019"

Jaden: We kicked off your football season this past weekend with the Jamboree and two live scrimmages - against Waterloo East and Union. And boy, did we have fun watching you. That helmet and pad suits you just fine, buddy. You did a great job at quarterback, made good passes, strong hand offs... and one beautiful touchdown run where you threw in a juke and a jump to knock your defender off his course and get your team its only touchdown for that scrimmage. And at linebacker? Four tackles, including one tackle that stopped a touchdown and one quarterback sack that I SO wish I had on video! I'm proud of you for how you played but more importantly - for who you are. I saw you high-fiveing teammates, offering encouraging words on the sidelines, and directing other players when they weren't quite sure where they were supposed to be. Win or lose along the way, I love watching you be you.

Brandon: We have a new pet in the family. Long story short, Daddy brought home what was supposed to be an educational visitor - and you and Jaden just couldn't let him go when the weekend was up. Mr. Salamander now lives in Jaden's room, and you all have made quite the cozy and cute little home for him. You're also fighting over who gets to change his water - and who gets to feed him live worms. Oh, the adventures motherhood has taken me on... ;)

Kaitlyn: I'll never forget this morning or this image of you. You handled you first jamboree quite well, spending a lot of time digging in the sandy gravel and marching up and down that little curb step to your heart's content. And when Jaden scored his big touchdown and the crowd cheered? You cheered right along with. You looked adorable in your CF Tiger shirt and white bow, and I'm so grateful again to be raising my sweet and spunky little girl.

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"a portrait of one, two, or all three of my children - once each week - in 2019"

Jaden: It's a bit odd to see you wearing #18 now instead of #10, but we're getting excited to watch you in your first live action of the season this weekend! It's Jamboree time!

Kaitlyn: Not only are you taking lots of steps, but you have figured out how to go from sitting to standing all by yourself without holding on to anything. Of course I've never seen you do it, but Kathy and your brothers have! You also learned to "pucker up" this morning, and we love hearing you say "uh oh!" Your budding personality is just the cutest!

Wordless Wednesday || A Summer Evening Campus Walk

One of our favorite places to walk is only a couple of blocks from home. We love the UNI campus - it feels like home, obviously, but also is beautifully maintained with lots of open grassy areas to play football, beautiful flowers and trees to admire and catch some shade under, and that special campanile tower that is a symbol for both our community, our university... and our family.

Earlier this summer, we introduced Kaitlyn to this special place. She touched the clock tower for the first time, got some dirt under her nails while playing in the purple and yellow flower beds and loved exploring the big purple and yellow chairs while watching her boys play football nearby.

We took our wedding pictures here, have taken some gorgeous Fall photos in our campus's red and orange fallen leaves... and now have pictures with our girl under the canopy of the bells.

UNI, you have our hearts.