School's Out For Summer!

M&E had their final day at St. Mark a couple of weeks ago. Next year, they are off to kindergarten! While I can't believe we got here so quickly, I'm excited for next year. I think they're going to have a blast and it will be fun to watch them learn and grow.

First Day at St. Mark:

Last Day at St. Mark:

Well, that's enough to bring a tear to my eyes. **Sniffle, sniffle.**

Ward Dedication/Update

Ward was dedicated at church on Mother's Day. It is always such a sweet service and a welcome reminder of the importance of raising our children in a Christ-centered home. Afterwards, we enjoyed a meal that I didn't cook and I was showered in flowers and cards from my sweet family. 

Speaking of this little angel cakes, he is just about the sweetest thing EVER. He got his top two teeth in the past couple of weeks so he now has four whole teeth. He can wave and clap. He loves dogs and says "woof woof" whenever he sees one. He has the sweetest little voice and talks often. He has started to rock a little bit and will lunge forward if he sees something he wants. He will also scoot backwards some, but he is not crawling. He does not like the feel of anything on his feet and refuses to put any weight on his legs, so no standing either. His pretty blonde hair has gotten curly in the back, so that along with his big beautiful blue eyes warrant him many "She is just so pretty!" comments when we're out and about. I just smile and say thank you as I walk away with my little boy in his truck outfit. Silly people. Ward has been napping much better lately and still sleeps great through the night. As of a few weeks ago, he is also weaned. He is now indulging in the likes of hamburgers, whole milk, juice, macaroni, asparagus and ANYTHING else we put in front of him. He eats what we eat. The boy loves to eat and would eat until he literally overflows if we let him. This little baby is so loved and gets loads of kisses and hugs all day everyday. What a fun addition to our family he is!

2012 Ballet Recital

Madeline LOVED ballet this year and it culminated in a beautiful performance about a month ago. The theme was "All Things Bright and Beautiful." The little ballerinas all sang the song together before their individual class performances. Each class had a seasonal theme and M's was "fall leaves." I got a video of the rehearsal as no recording was allowed during the actual recital. M worked out the kinks in the rehearsal and did an excellent job in the actual recital. It was (for lack of better words) so stinkin' cute.

She was awarded a bouquet of flowers from her boys and she received her real reward (read: bribe) for a job well done afterwards in the form of painted toenails (her first time and a very effective bribe).

M is looking forward to more ballet next year!

Spring Soccer

I asked Eli whether he wanted to play soccer again or play baseball this spring and he chose soccer. Once again, he had a blast playing and we saw some improvement too. Eli is so funny to watch because he just loves to be out there playing but I don't think he totally understands the concept of soccer yet, nor does he yet have that competitive fire burning. (Sometimes I have to remind Daddy that he is only 4 years old and it's just about having fun now.) 

Eli gave this season two very enthusiastic thumbs up.

NOLA Visit

The week after Easter we loaded the kids in the car and traveled down to New Orleans to visit with Granddaddy and Vivian. We had a blast and M&E have already said that they want to go to New Orleans again sometime. One of the many, many wonderful things about my children is that they are great road trippers, even little Ward. I think traveling and experiencing different places is so important for children and I hope that we will be able to continue broadening our horizons! 

Cafe Du Monde for beignets. We put away several orders.

A stroll around the Riverwalk. M&E thought the cruise ships and riverboats were pretty cool. However, they were not fond of the freaky huge caterpillars all over the place. Eli even got stung by one and it was quite the fiasco. Seriously, we caused a scene.

Playing at Audubon Park.

The streetcar was fun. Ward was so funny - he danced to the noise it makes and then he fell asleep.

The pool on the roof of our hotel was FREEZING but that couldn't keep M&E out of it!

Joseph, Natalie and Isaac flew in to surprise Granddaddy for his birthday. We had a fun time with dinner and dancing to celebrate.

We also got to visit with my Grandpop, M,E&W's great grandpop.

We had a big time in the Big Easy!

Easter 2012

Our Sunday School class had an Easter Egg hunt for the children this year and it was hilarious to watch M&E's very different tactics for egg gathering. At the end Eli's basket was full because he gathered up all the eggs he could find. Madeline on the other hand had very few eggs in her basket at the end because when she would find an egg, she would open it to see what was in it. If she didn't like the candy selection it contained she would close the egg back up and put it back down. Hilarious!

We had fun visiting with Mama Kaye and Mike this year!

Silliness

I have two teeth...

... and counting.

Who Needs Winter Anyway?

We have had the most mild winter, with temps often in the 60s and 70s. Normally I suffer from snow envy while watching friends and family play in it every winter. This year, our weather has been GORGEOUS and I have had NO snow envy (okay, maybe a hint of it at Christmas). It has been so nice for the children to be outside and not cooped up in this house all winter. They come in for a drink and I send them back out... and they crash into their beds at night. Even Ward has gotten to enjoy the outdoors lately. Today, I snapped a few pics of the kiddos soaking up the sun in the backyard...

I even got a picture of the neglected family member, our grey-haired old lady Ally dog.

Ward at 7 months

This sweet angel is getting so big and is such a lovey-dovey. At his 6-month check-up he weighed in at 17 lbs., 2 oz. (37th percentile) and his length was 27.5" (77th percentile). I'm sure he's grown quite a bit since then. The boy is an excellent eater and has not turned his nose up at any baby food (except carrots) and he loves puffs, teething cookies and crackers. He recently cut his first tooth. The very next day I went to check and he already had another! He suffered all the usual teething symptoms, which didn't help the fact that this sweet child DOES NOT SLEEP. He's gotten a little better with his naps but he still gets up one or two times a night. We've let him cry it out... and cry.... and cry... and hours later he doesn't give up. I'm sure we'll count that strong will as an asset one day but for now we're just tired. At least it only takes a few minutes to nurse him and he goes right back to sleep. Ward is getting pretty good at sitting on his own but not well enough for me to walk away and leave him yet. He's more than happy just to travel around on my hip and would do it all day long if I let him. Ward LOVES his brother and sister. I can put him in the Bumbo seat in Eli's room while all three are in there playing and he is just as content as can be. He's also babbling away lately and we love to hear his sweet voice saying "dadada" or "yeah". He still gives the sweetest hugs and is such a cuddle bug. Brandon and I can't resist snuggling that little fluffy head of his. Ward also loves the water - bath or shower - and doesn't mind at all getting water all in his face. We are ready for pool season to see what he can do!