Who said all girls were girly??

Just a quick funny story....
This morning after breakfast, Mia was sitting at the table playing with a Cinderella castle that she got for her birthday. It came with cute mini figures for Cinderella, the Prince, fairy godmother, stepsisters, and mice. She had quite a dialog going when I walked over to the table to have a peak. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that the castle was under attack by none other than a lego clone trooper holding a "big fire" (which is basically a lego built laser gun). And sadly, when all was said and done, I think the clone trooper won the battle.

Strawberries, Zucchini and Squash....Oh My!!

Well, after three years of talking about it, one year of "planning" it, and one month of working on it, we are so excited to say that our little garden is finally up and running!! Kyle spent a lot of time getting it all ready and it looks great. We planted strawberries, zucchini, squash, cucumbers, onions, peppers, eggplant and garlic. We even have a small section that is our herb garden (basil, mint, parsley and sage). Kyle also built a small section for the kids to plant whatever they want. Of course, they have to take care of it, too. Colton still hasn't decided what he wants to plant there. I have a feeling that we are going to be over-run with zucchini and squash (Kyle kind of forgot to read the instructions on how far apart to plant them). So, if you are ever in the Leander area and need some home grown veggies, feel free to stop on by and visit the Koepp Farmers Market!!!

Yellow Stripe Belt

Colton earned his yellow stripe belt last week at Kung Fu. He was so proud of himself and so are we. He practices his "moves" everyday. This is a picture of him and his friend, Duncan, who is also taking Kung Fu and earned his yellow stripe belt, too. Two proud boys!! After seeing this picture, I realized that I clearly need some practice tieing Colton's belt!!

Three Years Ago.....

1 year old

2 years old

3 years old

Today is Mia's birthday! I can hardly believe she is 3 years old!! Time sure does fly by. It seems like just yesterday we were bringing her home from the hospital...our little 7 lb. 15 oz. bundle of joy! Now she is our spunky and sassy little girl...all 29 pounds of her! She is stubborn (like her mom), very independent, and can hold her own in just about any crowd. She is the *princess* of the house and we just love her to pieces.

Happy Birthday, Mia!!

We celebrated Mia's birthday last weekend. She wanted a *ladybug* party so we decorated in black and red and I made her a ladybug cake. We had 1500 live ladybugs that we set free out in our garden at the end of the party. We all had a wonderful time and enjoyed celebrating with our family and friends.

Dentist!!

Colton and Mia had dentist appointments today. This was Mia's first trip to the dentist and she did great! She sat in the big chair, opened her mouth real big and let them brush her teeth. All but one of her baby teeth are in and they look super healthy! Colton did great, too. Yay! No cavities! They are both so excited about their new toothbrushes! On the way home, Colton asked me if I still go to the dentist. Hmmm....I guess I need to be a good example and get over my dentist-phobia!!

Bike Riding!!

Yesterday was a big day for Colton. After we got home from Kung Fu last night, we decided to stay outside and play. The kids were riding their scooters and bikes. Well, out of the blue, Colton convinced himself that he was the only 7 year old in the world who still had training wheels on his bicycle (I just love the logic of a 7 year old). So, he insisted that I take them off. Kyle got home from work just as I was taking off the training wheels and was so excited to help Colton learn to ride his bike. Colton was all geared up....helmet, knee pads, elbow pads, and wrist guards (I'm not overprotective, am I?!). I couldn't believe how well he did!! Kyle held on to the back of the bike for less than a minute before letting go. Colton only fell twice and both times he got right back up and tried again. It didn't take long before he was riding up and down the driveway...over and over again!! We are so proud of him. Kyle got his bike out and they went up and down the street together. We even hooked up our bike trailer to Kyle's bike and he pulled Caden and Mia around, too. They both loved it. Caden had the biggest smile on his face the whole time. Tonights plan....our first family bike ride!!

Wildflower Center

Yesterday we went with some friends to the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. The flowers were beautiful and the kids had a great time. Colton and Avery brought their nature journals and were very busy documenting as many flowers as they could. Mia and Rhys enjoyed running around together and Mia did great at resisting the urge to pick every flower she saw! The babies (Caden and Griffin) did remarkably well in their strollers. After we walked around the gardens, we went to the "Kid's House", where they got to do some neat wildflower arts and crafts. It was a fun *field trip* and Colton is already asking me when we can go back.

Happy Birthday to Kyle!!

Kyle's birthday was last Friday, March 31st...the big 34!!! Gosh, he's getting old!! We went out to eat with some friends and had a wonderful time. Colton was so excited for Kyle to open his present from him...a Chronicles of Narnia Stratego game. I know they are going to have lots of fun playing that!! I got Kyle a really nice ipod and boy was he surprised!! He loves it and takes it with him everywhere. The kids love it, too, and we've already had a few spats over it (between the kids, of course). He had a great birthday!

Kung Fu!!

Colton has been taking Kung Fu for a few months and had his first Tip test last week. He was tested on 10 sparring techniques and he got them all!! He received 5 stars (which we have to sew on his belt) and is so proud of himself. He was so nervous before the test and now he can hardly wait for the next one! Now that he has 5 stars, he should be getting his yellow stripe belt soon. He is so excited about that!!