Kids' New Year's Countdown

We are ready for fun!
For the last several years, we've had a very kid-friendly party ending with a balloon drop.
We have numbered bags for the kids to rip open in succession. Each bag has an activity to do. Our line up for tonight is:

10- New calendar. You can write everyone's birthdays (kids like seeing what day of the week their's falls)
9- Pizza dough to make individual pizzas
8- 100 piece puzzle to put together while the pizzas bake
7- Paper to record a goal
6- Fancy toasting glasses which we'll fill with eggnog milkshakes

5- Play ping pong--if nec'y, improvise with any small ball (hollow or rubber bouncy ball) on your kitchen table using books as paddles
4- Card game to play together
3- Simple craft (you could make paper snowflakes to hang in a window)
2- Popcorn to eat while watching an episode or their favorite cartoon. We love Shaun the Sheep!
1- Music for freeze-dancing

A balloon drop is easy to set up if you have a ceiling fan and crepe paper to form a net. When you turn on the fan, the balloons spin off!

You don't have to wait 'til midnight. It's always 12 somewhere. I like celebrating Greenland's or EST... a decent amount of sleep makes for happier campers the next day.
Happy New Year!

Angels

LOVE THIS VIDEO from the Piano Guys. I love the humility portrayed by the wise men and the sweet little bell ringer in the angel choir. Simply beautiful!


MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Frigid Fluctuations

We enjoyed really nice weather in early fall.

Our kindergartner turned 6 in Oct. His primary teacher from church left a cute birthday sign on our door. We love her!

My sister & her family came to visit last week. It was cold by then. You could only get by without a coat or scarf if you were a wolf!

It was so fun to have them come.

Now it is so freezing all you want to do is stay inside, update your blog, or try to solicit sweet smiles.

Ahhh, THAT warms my heart no matter how frigid it is.

Baptism & Blessing

Miss H was so excited to be baptized!


We had 2 of my brothers and most of my husband's family celebrate with us.

The next day was the baby's blessing.

She was blessed with the gift of charity, that she could mourn with those who mourn & lift others. She was also promised she would be a mother. It was really special.

We went hiking later that day.

Also, my youngest brother got engaged this weekend! We feel like we're on top of the world! We pretty much were...

Balancing Act

The baby is a month old & the older kids have started school. We are still trying to figure out how to juggle it all. Life is a balancing act for EVERYone in EVERY season of life isn't it? But we are willing to sacrifice some sleep & serenity because we know we are really lucky to have a new baby & to be parents. Here's the rundown on everyone...

Our kindergartener really loves school (esp. riding the bus with his big sister!) Speaking of which... she just turned 8 & will be baptized soon.

She is so smart & sweet. We had a party for her.

The baby is catching up on her growth (part of the reason for inducing, besides being breech and on blood thinners, was concern that she wasn't growing well at the end of the pregnancy. As it turns out, the placenta was small and not functioning optimally-- a condition linked to my clotting). But she's been thriving since birth and is now in the 10th%.
Still tiny, but it's an improvement. We got a kick out of the fact that her size and coloring are so similar to the baby doll!

D is sure enthralled with her. He put her picture in his locker. (I can still hardly believe he's old enough to have a locker.) I've been dreading the middle school milestone somewhat. But now that it's actually here, I'm excited for him.
He's learning clarinet in band and running cross country. He's a pretty confident kid, which is half the battle in the middle school years. That gives me hope that he'll get to enjoy this stage of development.

With the other kids in school again, I get to spend a little more time with this little girl. I love hearing her voice as she speaks or sings. She's a cute mimic. She's observant and bright & really good at puzzles.

Hope this fall brings blessings to you as well.

Sweetness

While the kids went swimming with dad & g'pa today, my mom and I did a photo shoot with the baby.




I like that we caught a smile. She has a happy, sweet temperament.
She looks a lot like her brother. In this picture, you can see they have the same hair color.


We are really enjoying her sweetness.

Tiny and Treasured

We are so thrilled at the arrival of another miracle!

She weighed 5 lbs 11 oz. and is blonde unlike our other girls.
We are relieved that things went as smoothly as they did with her delivery.

The other kids think this is better than Christmas!

We'd have to agree. We feel so lucky!

Recent Adventures

We were able to visit family for a baptism & graduation.

We went to the zoo & saw polar bears.

D is moving from cubscouts to boy scouts this month.

We are having a fun summer thus far!

So lucky

I just feel so lucky today to be a mom...especially to these great kids.
They fill our lives with joy.
There's a bumpersticker that says, "If you think my HANDS are FULL, you should see my heart."
I like that sentiment.

5 things to love about Spring!

1. Birthdays! This little girl is 2 now!

We made this pig cupcakes just b/c it's fun to hear her snort/oink.
2. Play at the park weather

3. Sunshine in the sky & in your soul

4. Gardening & hiking season!

5. EASTER! Happy Springtime!

It's a...

We had an ultrasound today. Baby looks good overall, but amniotic fluid levels are pretty low (even though I'm not dehydrated, so based on that they are sending me for an extra consult with the MFM specialist.)

Anyway, the treat I made for the kids looks like this
So that as soon as school is done, they'll know they are getting a little sister. We are excited!

More love

Announcing MORE LOVE coming this year to our house...
We're due the 1st part of August. Birthday will be the last week of July since I am on blood thinners just like last time and will need to know when to stop my shots. We find out in a few weeks if it is a boy or girl. We are all very excited.
Happy Valentine's Day!