Brothers

I know I have mentioned before how different it is to have little boys. They spend so much time wrestling each other, and now Roy is getting in on the action too! The do however have some wonderful calm moments that I admit I greatly enjoy! Here are some pictures of them working together, and feeding Roy his yogurt. They were being particularly sweet on this day. I sure love my kids!

St. Patricks Day!

We love to celebrate holiday's in our house! St. Patrick's day is no exception. Here is a re-cap of our "green" day! We hope all of you had a great day as well.

Being green to church was fun, not cute t-shirts but I think the kids looked nice! And crazy, but they look that way a lot!!

After church we drank healthy "green" smoothies. Jess and Sam were silly as they drank theirs.

 Jessica made Irish soda bread, which I have never made. It came out great!

 The boiled Irish dinner was fabulous! We ate so much corned beef, cabbage, potatoes and carrots!

 Carrie and Wally had some silly moments as well!

 You don't see Sarah because she was our server for the night. I will post more about that another time, but each Sunday we have a special dinner and one of the kids serves everyone... they LOVE this! 

Our desert was cupcakes, made by Samantha, they were so yummy! And green milkshakes with homemade whipped cream.

 Hope you had a great day too!!

Sammie is...11?!

Today the girls and I were talking about school for Jessica next year and Jess said... "Well, Sam will be in the middle school too!" I stopped and turned to Samantha and realized that Jess was right. Sam will be in the middle school next year, how did that happen? (groaning inwardly) my kids are growing up soooo fast. (This also means that Nelson will be in elementary school next year!) Here is a quick peak at Samantha's birthday, which was on Feb 8th. The last post for our "birthday season." Which is good because Sarah's birthday is in one month!!

Blowing out the candles, I hope she wished for something good!

Samantha is always so good at making you feel like you gave her the best gift ever!!

I hope Sammie had a wonderful day. It was fun to celebrate her. She is such a smart, funny, wonderful girl. I am glad to be her mother, she teaches me things all the time. Happy Birthday cute Sam!

Oh yeah, Deric and I have birthday's in the "season" too, but our pictures aren't as cute as the kids!!

Carrie turns seven!

More from "Birthday Season"...

Carrie turned SEVEN!

She is turning into a wonderful young lady. She has lots of friends, does well in school, and is always trying to make us laugh. This year she wanted Monster cupcakes and cake. I was happy to oblige, these little guys were fun to make!

At school the kids all told her good things about her after the teacher gave her Birthday magic!!

Just made a wish!

We wore Roy out!!

She got new beds for her dolls, along with a LOT of other accessories!!

Bubble Bath

When the girls were little they had bubble baths all the time. Unfortunatly I haven't done them as much for the boys. I was feeling a little bad so the other day I bought some bubble bath for them. They were so excited. I over "bubbled" the bath the first time for an extra fun effect. They just loved it. Of course Nelson and Wally made beards and put bubbles all over Roy. Here are some pictures of the great event!

Growth...

My children are growing up. They change gradually sometimes and other times it is right before my eyes. I love watching this growth and yet can't help but feel some sadness. My babies are growing up and there is nothing I can do to stop it (nor would I want to!). 

The growth of my children has also meant growth of their mother. They have changed me, made me better than I was. I am more patient, more understanding, more everything. I don't mean to say that  better means best, I sure have a LONG way go... and I will NEVER be perfect, just as long as I am better than I was when I first became a mom! 

 I feel bad sometimes for Jessica who had to break me in, to teach me how to be a Mom! I sure hope she gets extra blessings for putting up with training ME! All of my children really deserve gold medals for having to help in my training process! My growth as a mom has really taught me to relax more, appreciate the little things, and look my children in the eyes and SEE them as often as I can. 

My children have grown so much lately. Sam, Sarah, and Carrie all just had parent teacher conferences and their teachers all had wonderful things to say about them! I left the school so proud to be their mother!  Nelson is learning more and more this year as we prepare for Kindergarten in the fall. But the most growth lately has come from my other three... the youngest boys and my oldest child!

Roy of course is changing from a cute baby into a toddler before my eyes. He is walking, going up and down the stairs and climbing everything. He is so inquisitive, I love to watching him and see his little wheels turning as he decides what to get into next!!

Wally has been slightly more difficult than my other children. He is passionate, obstinate, and quick to anger. He pushes me to my limits very often. But he has a softer side, one of quick hugs laughs and and lots of jokes. This softer side has been present more and more and I am loving this change. He is so fun and he is always looking out for his little brother Roy. Just the other day he heard Roy crying and went and gathered books for him to make him happy. Not only did he get Roy to settle down, but he got him to start laughing!!

 

The other major change has come from Jessica. Last year she attended an activity for church where she has to stand up in front of a bunch of people. She was nervous and self conscious. I could tell it was hard for her but she did it any way and I was so proud of her. Last night she had another such opportunity. But this year as school she has been working on a play and doing a few other things that really put her just out side her comfort zone.The change was amazing. She looked at the crowd, was funny and entertaining, and did a wonderful job. I know it still wasn't easy for her but the growth was amazing. She was also recognized for completing a project for her personal progress (a program for young women at church) and earned a ribbon for knowledge. (I will  post more about her project later.) She is working hard, earning all A's, and trying new things... she is also babysitting for other people now too!  My little girl is growing up!

This years theme for the youth of our church is "Stand Ye in Holy Places"

Sorry for all of the words... my head and heart were full today!!

Happy New Year Birthday!

The second birthday of our "Birthday Season" was the first day of the New Year. My handsome Nelson turned five years old as we rang in the New Year. As a family we decided that there would be no big parties this year. Only a family party with a friend or two to share cake and ice cream with.

Nelson has lots of interests so picking a cake theme was hard... Lego, Nerf, Star Wars?... as you can see Star Wars won this time but it leaves me plenty of options for next year!!

I just love his sweet face! This boys eyes sparkle all the time!

Opening gifts with eager siblings. My favorite part of gift giving is watching my other children get so excited about GIVING to others!

At preschool Nelson got to celebrate with friends. Hmmm... I think I have seen this crown someplace, what do you think?

I hope that he had a great day. I sure enjoyed celebrating him for a day. He got to choose his breakfast (crepes) and dinner (pigs in a blanket!). He also was exempt from his chores for the day!

What fun it is to watch this little boy grow. He has really changed this past year and all signs of baby and toddler-hood have left him. He is very Independence and loves to make his own popcorn and pour his own drinks. He is very modest, but not shy. He loves to play with others and can't wait until the snow is gone some more so he can ride his bike and new "motorcycle." I sure love this child and I am so grateful that my Father in Heaven is allowing me to raise him. Happy Birthday buddy!