Regan's 10th Birthday!

Escape to Texas

Last week I headed to Texas to visit my sister Katy and her family!  And most especially to meet my newest nephew  Stockton Nicholas born at the end of January.  The highlights of my wonderful week away:

Of course, this little guy:

He is so cute, and the best baby!  I am not exaggerating when I say, he hardly cried at all...and I was there for a week!  I am so glad I got to see him and hold him and spend time with him.  It is amazing how you can see a new little family member and instantly feel such a strong bond.  I hope I can be a good Auntie to him.

And this guy, my nephew Sutton.  I love this kid so much.  He is just the best kid ever, so easy and helpful and so full of love.  He made me feel special all week, and it was so nice to know that he really wanted me to come and spend time with him.  We spent hours playing soccer in the backyard and reading books at night.  I was so happy to get to see his school (he is super smart!) and get a little glimpse into his everyday life.  I just can't say enough about how much I love this good, good boy.

This girl, my little niece Stella.  She is a total fireball in every way.  She kept me laughing all week, and is just so entertaining.  Stella couldn't quite decide if she was happy I was there or not...and she kept verifying with her mom that I would actually be leaving at some point.  She did love combing and spraying my hair at night and did not really appreciate it when I would do her hair!  I loved taking her to daycare and playing "I Spy" and our newly invented backyard game "Mr. Wolf."  I will always treasure listening to her squeals as we chased each other around the yard.  She is a one of kind girl!  We even got to celebrate her birthday while I was there at Pump it Up.

I love this family so much...and now they are a family of 5!  It's hard to believe.  I so enjoyed hanging out with them and being in their home.  They make me feel so welcome...and didn't even care when I ate all their HEB granola cereal.  Nick is such a great host, and I have loved him since Kate first met him.  So grateful for him!  He is helpful and hard working and such a great dad.

And then there's my baby sis...oh what I can I say about her?  I am so proud of her.  She is such a great mother and wife.  It is such a special treat for me to spend time with her.  We didn't stop talking since the moment I arrived until I left...except for a few hours at night.  We love to visit and just be together, always lots of laughing and story telling, and she is a great listener.  Saying good-bye to her is one of my least favorite things...ever.

Saying good-bye to all of the Georges is hard!

The Texas weather was amazing.  It was unseasonably warm, as in the 80's...in February.  Oh it was so good for my sunshine deprived Midwestern soul.  We spent as much time as possible being outside:  eating, walking, playing, holding the baby, talking, etc.  It was so amazingly gorgeous.  I tried so hard to soak it all in, because I knew I would be returning to the cold.

It was a wonderful week...of course I missed my family...big shout out to Snarr who stepped up to keep all five at home...he got everyone where they needed to be (think 6 basketball games, soccer, dance, pitching, church, school, etc.), battled pink eye, celebrated Valentines Day, and took them to Kung Fu Panda 3...yes, he is amazing.  I also had some amazing friends who helped out with rides, babysitting, etc.  And I am so thankful.  It was so important to me to have this time with Katy, Stockton and the rest of her family.

(A couple of other things I didn't take pictures of but want to remember....going to church with my brother in law Jed and my Snarr nieces and nephews- so glad I got to see them although it was short!, eating at 2 amazing restaurants and dining outside, a What-a-Burger picnic at the park, trips to HEB and Academy, relaxing plane rides alone)

And now I have only been home for a few days and Katy just sent me this photo of the little man.  He is already looking different and getting bigger!  I can't wait to see him again.

Luke Right Now

The thing about a 5th child is there just never seems to be enough time to document his life as the others have been documented.  Sometimes it makes me really sad but then I remember that in actuality this child has been photographed, videoed, posted about, etc. more than all the others combined thanks to cell phones (mostly his sisters).  But there are still those things and memories that I need to capture about him right now...he is already 2 and knocking on the door of turning 3.  So here are some things about Luke right now-

-He is finally talking...and talking...and talking.  Just as we suspected, once he learned he never stopped.  And he is very loud.  Watch out if you don't understand what he is saying!  He gets so mad and will just scream at the top of his lungs.  I haven't ever had a screamer like him.

-Some things that I love that he says-  "Daddy, top toring" (Daddy, stop snoring!), "I want to play hosie with Weggie." (I want to play horsie with Reaggie), "Hode me."  (Hold me),  "Keep hands to self.", "Goss" (gross)

-He loves to name all the people in our family...Mama, Dada, Ashty, JoJo or Jojie, Wegan or Weaggie, CoCo.  And he his "Baby Wook" or "Wuke Angelo".

-Since I haven't been subbing much, he and I have settled into a great routine at home.  We take the kids to school, then we sometimes go to the Y or run errands.  He always has to have his chocolate shake (milk) for that.  Then we come home and have a snack.  He gets to watch or play on the IPAD while I shower which he loves.  Then we clean together or work around the house.  He is never far from my side but is really good about playing with his cars, legos, trains, etc.  After lunch, it is time to read books which he absolutely loves.  Probably as much as Ashton did.  He loves all books about trucks, fire engines, trains, cars, etc.  He wishes we could read all day, and I can't resist when he says, "Mama, read me?"  He really hates laying down for a nap and always cries himself to sleep.  He loves when we go pick up "ColeRegan."

-This boy is not a morning person.  He does not like to be woken up and if left undisturbed will sleep until 10:00.  Morning church has not be kind to him.  On the other hand, he is a night owl.  He just comes alive at night.  He likes to sneak downstairs to play with the big girls and always hangs out in Mom and Dad's bed until at least 10:00 PM.  It is hard to make him go to bed because we enjoy having him to ourselves and he is so fun and pleasant at night.

-Luke is super opinionated.  He wants to be in on everything and has been spoiled by having people cater to his every whim.  If he doesn't like something, he will surely let you know all about it!

-Luke loves trucks- when we are driving around he continuously points out trucks, trailers, tractors, jeeps, trains, excavators, cherry pickers, bulldozers, buses, garbage trucks, ambulances (Wee-ohs), police cars, and fire engines.  He gets really mad if I tell him I don't know where they are going or what they are doing.  I have started making answers up which only works some of the time.

-Right now he can't say his f's, so instead of fish he says "pish".  It is soooo cute, and we just love it!

-"Someone" told him that there are monsters under the bed, so he will wake up crying and say "mosters, mosters coming"

We just love this boy.  He is growing up so fast!!!

(When I was working on this post, I kept feeling like I didn't really have many pictures of Luke, then I went looking on the girls phones, and BAM, there they all were.  That is one good thing about cell phones!)

Jordan's Birthday

When we finally returned from our big holiday trip...and the decorations were finally put away...and we finally got everyone back to work and school....it was time to celebrate Jordan Marie's birthday!!!  It was a big one as she turned 12!!!  So exciting!  Jordan loves her birthday and always makes big plans! And this year did not disappoint with lots of celebrations for this gal.

First, birthday week started with a lunch date with Mom and Luke, of course to Burger King where she downed a Whopper in 4 minutes flat.  We had fun with Luke who insisted on getting Dad's soda to drink (Dr. Pepper) but we tricked him by getting Root Beer instead (our fav)...He refused to drink it and told us it was a "new kind" he didn't like!

That evening we had a really fun get together for our girl.  We had been trying to think of something where Jordan could include everyone that she loves...her school friends, church friends, etc.  We came up with the idea of an ice cream sundae open house.  I have to say that Ashton helped so much to pull this whole thing off.  She is a great party planner!  Never fear, it turned out to be the coldest day we have had yet this winter with a high around 0 degrees...the perfect day for ice cream!  But it was warm in our house, especially surrounded by so many wonderful people.  Jordan is so very loved, and we really love everyone who came by.  Really great night!

The next day was her actual birthday which started with a new birthday outfit.  If you know Jordan well, it won't surprise you that she ordered up some Casey's pizza for lunch.  Luke and I were happy to deliver it to her at school.  After school, it was time for her traditional birthday treasure hunt where she scored some fun gifts.  And as usual, she was a great sport about letting others help open all her gifts.

Next, it was off to Culvers for some birthday dinner.  We were so happy to have the Despains join us there, they are just like family to us.  And Jordan was so excited because it was her first night to attend Young Women's (youth group) at church.  She is finally 12 and ready to take the next step into this amazing program.

Her birthday celebrations weren't quite over...she got to go out to eat with some of her favorite people in the world, Jackie and Tanner.  They were her primary teachers when they first moved here, and have loved her ever since.  She was totally spoiled with Olive Garden and Whitey's.  We sure love the Clarks!

Grandma and Grandpa along with the cousins came up for the weekend, and of course, we had to throw in one more birthday dinner and celebration.  And Sunday was a special day as it was her first day in Young Women's.  I am so glad I get to be in there with her too.

And now our girl is 12.  This is what I posted on facebook about her on her special day:

"My girl is 12 today! I remember the cold Iowa afternoon when she was born. She's been bringing sunshine to January ever since...she is outgoing, fun, sporty and helpful... And we love her more than words can say. Happy 12th birthday Jordan Marie!"

Twelve things about Jordan at age 12:

1. She is still Miss Sporty- she loves basketball and soccer (goalie), but her true love is softball.  She has worked year round on improving her pitching, and we are so proud of her hard work.
2. Jordan has really picked up on piano this year.  Most of it, she has done on her own.  Her songs for Christmas recital were hard, and she nailed them.  She is also still doing viola- sometimes she doesn't really like it, but she has made a lot of progress.  She even made it into honors orchestra and honors choir.
3. Middle school has been a big adjustment for Jordan.  She has done really well, but it hasn't been easy.  She is learning lots of life lessons from her hard experiences.  She is learning about being different and standing out from the crowd.  She has enjoyed her TAG class and has worked hard to keep up with the 7th and 8th graders.
4. Jordan is so ready for Young Women's.  She is growing up spiritually.  She asks a lot of questions and is a deep thinker.  She is excited to go to the temple.
5. Jordan is still my right hand man.  I can almost always count on her to help me out, especially with Luke.  While Tod was in Germany, she did so much for me.  And the whole time that he has been the Bishop, she has just been amazing.  I don't think I would have ever survived bedtime without her. Usually she just takes Luke downstairs to play so I can concentrate on Regan and Cole.  Luke absolutely adores her.
6. Jordan has learned to sacrifice for others.  She is willing to give up things for others.  I always tell her that she is going to be a great mom.
7. Jordan is really funny.  She sees humor in lots of things and laughs easily.  She and I like to share funny stories and experiences at the end of the day.
8. Jordan is good at talking to others.  She loves to talks to adults and will often share with me interesting conversations she has had with her teachers and coaches.
9.  Jordan is so patient with Luke.  Often, she has energy for him when I seem to have none.  I am amazed at how well she does with him, even when he is difficult.
10. She is very close with her Dad.  I think she missed him the most out of the kids when he was in Germany.  She really values his opinion and enjoys spending time with him.
11.  Jordan is so determined.  If she gets something in her mind, she is going to do it.  Watch out world.
12.  I feel so lucky to be this girl's mom.  As she has gotten older, and a bit of teenage tension has crept into our relationship, I still look at her and see my chubby, bright eyed smiling baby girl.  She has always brought so much happiness.  Looking forward to a great year Beans!!