Spring Break 2011

Spring break this year was fun and as usual went by way to fast. The good thing about it going by so fast was that Gracie was gone for nine days! She got to go to Palm Springs with my Mom and Dad for the week and had a great time! Although their return flight was cancelled which delayed their return home two whole days! I'm glad she got the opportunity to go and have a great time with Mimi, Pappy and Uncle Charlie! My cousin Dawn and her girls came down to stay with us the first few days of spring break and we played some back yard baseball with the kids! It was so much fun! Em and I even got in on the action!

This is what I caught Eli doing while we were busy playing ball! Boys will be boys!!

On Tuesday afternoon Em and I and the kids headed to Vancouver to stay with Dawn and her family for a few days. The kids had a blast together and I always love getting to hang out with my sister and cousin! We had a few days of crazy weather but when we woke up Friday to sunshine we got ready and headed to the Portland Zoo!

For whatever reason that day Eli was in a TERRIBLE mood!! I'm pretty sure it crossed my mind once or twice to ask and see if I could put him in with the monkeys!!

What a great day it was to be at the zoo!! Wish Gracie and Mike could have been with us! Something we are going to have to do again soon!

A little late but not forgotten!

Gracie's birthday came and went like a whirlwind this year! I can't believe that my first baby my only little girl is nine years old!! Where have the years gone? March 12th will always be such a special day, the day God blessed me with my first child and made me a Mommy! This year we were sooo busy on Gracie's special day it was crazy! She had a basketball game followed by a piano concert and finally the big party! She has been asking for almost two years to have her party at Garland's Gymnastics! It's a great place and the kids have so much fun! The best part is that the birthday kid gets to be harnessed into the bungee and shot across the room! Gracie was so excited about this she could hardly contain herself! The party was a hit and I think everyone had a great time!

The best part of the party to me was giving Gracie her tickets to the Taylor Swift concert! Mike thought it would be a great gift and told me to try and get tickets! I did and am so glad! I have never seen such pure excitement on her face as I did then! She was beaming and so excited! We have to wait until September to go, but it's going to be great, just my girlie and me! :) Happy Birthday to the best daughter a Mom could have! I love you Gracie! :)

Happy 7th Birthday Cole!

7 years ago today God gave us an amazing gift! Cole came into our lives on a snowy February day! He has grown into such a great kid! He is funny and passionate about so many things! He loves to cook, work with his Dad and hunt or shoot guns with his Dad! He is always willing to lend a hand when anyone needs it! He is a good helper and LOVES his family! We love you Cole! Can't wait to see how God blesses your life and ours in the years to come!

First Basketball game!

I don't know who was more excited, me or Gracie! We practiced a few skills in the entryway before we walked out of the house!

She did so well!! Most of all she had tons of fun! Scored her first ever basket!! Can you tell I'm excited! I love the league that she plays in. It's through one of the local churches and is so great for the kids! They learn bible verses each week and also get to learn some basketball!

Charlie plays on another team and also had his first game today right after Gracie!! They both did awesome!!

Happy Birthday JoJo!

February 1st, 2007

to

February 1st 2011

Wow, It's amazing that it has been four years since this special little boy entered our lives! We love him to pieces! He brings so many smiles and giggles to our house! There is so much about Joey that is so special! He LOVES to give hugs and is so good at it! He is kind and energetic, so smart and loves to help anyone that needs it! He is an amazing big brother to Eli and a great little brother to Gracie and Cole! He wants to be a firefighter (fiderfighter) when he grows up! Happy Birthday Joey! We love you!

The Polar Express!

Time for hot chocolate and cookies!

Visit with Santa where he gave each of the kids their own bell!

The kids pretty much had smiles on their faces the entire time! I think Mike and I did too! It was so much fun watching our kids having so much fun!

The conductor was so neat! He punched the kids tickets and took the time to talk to each one of them!

What an awesome experience and memory for our family! This morning we woke up bright and early and surprised the kids with matching Christmas jammies. They were a little confused wondering why we wanted them to put jammies on first thing in the morning but got them on with excitement in their eyes! They know something was going on, just didn't quite know what! So we told them we were going to go catch a train and go to the North Pole to see Santa! They were so excited! Cole said right away "We're going on the Polar Express aren't we?!!" So we loaded up in the car and after a quick stop for some coffee we were on our way to Hood River where we caught the Polar Express! It was raining so hard when we got there our coats were soaked just from going from our cars to the train station. We patiently waited along with the other 200 people crowded like sardines into the small station for the train to arrive! As soon as we loaded the train we knew it was worth the wait and the crowd! As soon as we started heading North we were served hot chocolate and cookies by the chefs and it actually started snowing outside! Once we got to the North Pole, after having to stop for a herd of Reindeer :) Santa boarded the train and spoke to all of the kids handing each of them a silver bell from his sleigh! When we got back to the station we had a picture taken with Santa and the kids were able to talk to him a little more! Cole was so shell shocked! It cracked me up because he couldn't remember what he was going to ask Santa for and almost panicked until he remembered! Even Eli sat on his lap with no hesitation! The whole experience was amazing! I'm so thankful for the prayers that were going out for our family all week! Joey and Cole got hit pretty hard with some nasty "bug" that took them more than a week to snap out of and I was worried all week that we weren't going to be able to go. But this morning after two days of antibiotics both boys woke up feeling pretty good. A little worn out after being so sick for a week, but so excited to go see Santa! We are so blessed!

Lots of fun!

The first snow of the year! The kids were out in the snow before 8:00 this morning! I love it! Just wish it weren't such a pain to get them all ready to go out in it!

Shooting the 22! Kids did great! Cole got a little target and they all hit it at least once! :)

Playing in the leaves!Charlie and Gracie had a piano recital. Actually it's a ribbon festival that they do different things at and earn ribbon! Gracie got 12 ribbons and did great!