Welcome Baby Jason

Our sweet baby Jason Blaine Blood was born on June 1, 2011! His delivery went perfectly, and he was perfect as well. We are so blessed to have him in our family! It was an exciting day for his brothers and sisters to finally meet him at the hospital. Mom and Jason spent some quiet days together at the hospital before bringing him home on June 3rd, and then the quiet was over! Our sweet Grandmas were here for the next 3 weeks to help us in every way and we are so grateful for their help. Our baby Jason gets LOTS of loves and kisses from us all.

Jason Blaine Blood 8 lbs. 9 oz, 20 1/2 in., 4:55 pm

Jason 1 week old

Jason 3 weeks old

Jason one month old

6 weeks old at Baby Blessing on July 17, 2011 in Utah

Jason 2 months old

Jason 2 1/2 months old....charming us with those baby smiles all the time!

Easter fun....

It's been raining here for days now with some tornado watches and warnings mixed in with some incredible lightning and thunderstorms....all of which made for one very WET Easter and indoor egg hunts this year. The kids don't care of course. They had fun inside just as much as they would have had outside. We went to two egg hunts this year at the Thiess's and then at the Gold's. We are grateful for great friends that make holidays so fun when we don't have our family near by to celebrate with. Issac ate the candy as fast as he could open those eggs! It didn't take him long to figure out this Easter Egg hunt deal!


Cameron looking so grown up these days!


Our cute girls....sure love dressing them up.

Handsome little Busdo....with the Ring Pop he would NOT give up for the pictures. Don't blame him! They are delicious.

The best group shot we get with these 4 monkeys!






It was a fun Easter. We had a special Sunday today at church, and we remember and give thanks for our Savior who makes the joy we have as a family possible.

Kelsey turns 7!

Our Kelsey June turned 7! She couldn't sleep the night before her birthday she was so excited for this day. I think she had a great day...it started off with chocolate chip pancakes and a few presents being opened to her delight. I took her a special lunch from McDonalds at school which is always exciting, and then we had friends over that night for cake and ice cream and more presents!! She got a lot of books and craft projects....stuff to keep that girl BUSY for awhile hopefully!
Kelsey is one of a kind. She adds flair and a certain "excitement" to just about any situation. She is a super reader, and loves to use that incredible imagination she has. She adds drama to everything, and that keeps things interesting around our house. She's always up for fun, and we love her so much!


Present and party fun!!

Make a wish!

Kelsey with her pony cake. We ran out of bday candles...but I had a #5 candle plus 2 regular ones to equal 7!!

Kelsey blowing our a candle on those yummy Chocolate chip pancakes!

Thunder over Louisville 2011

A big event here in Kentucky is Thunder over Louisville. It's a huge fireworks show (the biggest in North America) and we get to watch this awesome show from Blaine's office downtown. Its the perfect way to see the show. The Larsens and the Stucki's joined us for dinner and fun times this night! There was lots of "oohs and ahhs" during the fireworks....especially by Isaac which was so funny.

If your wondering why there are fireworks in April....it is the start of the Kentucky Derby Festival which lasts about 2 weeks here in Louisville every April/May.

The fireworks are set off from two barges on the Ohio River and one of the main bridges that cross the river....its pretty awesome!


Isaac working at Daddy's desk.

Spring Break 2011

We started off the Spring Break weekend by watching General Conference with Nikki and Darrin. We love having them in Ohio so we can see them often! Of course, the kids love it when they come....especially Darrin. Who doesn't love a cousin who tickles you, jumps on the trampoline, tosses and twirls you around, reads books to you, plays games with you....over and over again?? Darrin is a good sport and we had a great time with them. We also drove to Lexington on Sunday to see great friends there and watch Conference with them too. (Thanks Millars and Jones's....so happy to meet those sweet babies you have!!)


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Ellie and Isaac being twirled and tossed by Darrin = pure joy!


We headed to the Louisville Zoo with the Thiess family one day. The kids just love having friends there to run around with and enjoy a beautiful day outside! That zoo pass we have is so great...worth every penny!



It was a week of zoo trips...we drove to Cincinnati one day to meet Nicole at the Zoo. I had forgotten what a beautiful zoo they have in Cincinnati. There were flowers and tulips blooming everywhere. We saw just about all there was to see at the zoo that day. The kids loved seeing the manatees that they have there. They have a train that you can take a ride on, and Isaac was so excited about it. He held his little ticket in his hand and couldn't wait to get on. We had to wait in line for our turn, and the train came and left one time without us because we couldn't get on that round. Isaac's little heart just broke when that train pulled away without him! He just cried! Oh what joy he had though when it came back and he got to climb on and take a ride. He loved every second of the five minute train ride we took on the "choo choo."

Pretty soon we will have 5 monkeys in our family pictures just like this one!

Isaac holding his train ticket waiting to get on and Ellie and Nicole having fun together on the train!

Thanks for spending a fun day with us Nik....we love you!

To end the week, we went camping with the Larsen and Strong families to Deam Lake in Indiana. The kids were SO excited to go camping, so I'm so glad the weather cooperated and we were able to go for just one night. There is something about sleeping in a tent, having a campfire, looking for sticks, and exploring the trails that is just heaven for kids, and we did have a great time. It took everyone (especially Isaac) a long time to go to sleep and it was a COLD night, but we made it through. The grown ups stayed up late playing games which was so fun. The next morning Blaine and the kids made an attempt to go fishing. Cameron has been wanting to go fishing for so long, so we finally got a pole and gave it shot. It was not very successful, but we got the supplies ready, and got the line in the water at least! The next trip will be better! Cameron thought it was great which is all that counts. While we were fishing, a huge thunderstorm came rolling in, and we had to pack up our camp really quick and barely missed being drenched in a major storm. An exciting conclusion to a fun camping trip!


Kelsey setting up her spot in the tent.

Cameron and Ellie enjoying their smores...one of the best parts of camping of course!
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Isaac chillin' in the kid sized camping chair.

Perfectly toasted marshmellow by Blaine

Cameron and Kelsey trying out the new fishing pole....you have to wear the fishing hat if you have the pole....Dad's rule.

Jaimee and my great friend Summer Larsen.

All in all a fun week off of school and time spent together! Sure love Kentucky in the Spring!