My boys

Aren't they a handsome bunch!?!

2012 Christmas Parade

This year Emma and Abigail's dance studio had a float in the parade. Abigail was so excited to be in her 'first parade.' It was freezing--what's new--but they had a blast! And they looked pretty cute too! :)

Christmas card flop

My Christmas cards this year have the saying 'Let it Snow!' on it. So when we woke up this morning to snow on the ground I thought I would have the perfect picture to put in the card. However, the weather channel said it was 17 degrees and felt like 2 degrees outside. It was windy and snowy and bit too bright. Needless to say, some kids were cold, some couldn't open their eyes, and some were just too young to cooperate. That being said, none of the pictures turned out quite how I imagined they would. So while I didn't feel like including them in the Christmas card, I definately think they are blog worthy. Here's my snow pictures!
Steven stands like a champ and can walk up to eight steps. Pretty soon he'll be running after the other kids.

Eyes were a big problem. We tried counting 1-2-3 open, but that didn't help. Steven didn't have a problem keeping his eyes open. However, he did have a problem smiling.

Abigail is such a ham! Jacob is just cold.

This is when I realized it wasn't going to get any better. Time for plan B for our Christmas picture!

Kitchen decor

Recently I decided to redecorate--or should I say 'decorate'--my dining room. I've started repainting my table and chairs (and stools and shelves). It should be really cute. I'll post pictures when I'm done. I also decided to finally hang something on the wall. I got a framed picture that says 'bon appetit' vertically. Then I had a mini photo shoot with my kids. These are the pictures that I'll be putting around the picture...along with one of all the kids together.
Steven was really into the tomatoes. By the time he was done, that tomato had several good chunks taken out of it.

Abigail loves lemons. However, she hates this picture of herself. I thought it was really cute though and since I was picking...I won!

Jacob was being really crazy during his pictures. He kept trying to juggle the peppers and he beat them against his chest like Tarzan. Somehow we managed to get this really cute picture though. I love it!

Emma is getting so grown up. She acts more mature all the time. It was definately easy to shoot her because she was so cooperative...which can't be said of all of them.

Aaron is a ball of energy and ideas. He even opened the pumpkin and put his hand in it. There's never a dull moment with him. Once all of these pictures get hung on the wall, I'll to post a picture of the final product.

Aaron's seed project

Last month Aaron's class was doing a seed project. That meant that for two weeks I had to save the seed out of every fruit or vegetable that we ate. Aaron was really good at reminding me to keep them. :)

He did a really good job. All I did was print the pictures out and man the hot glue gun. He ended up with seeds from 15 fruits and vegetables. Next thing to tackle...a science fair project for Emma.

Halloween 2011

We had a lot of fun this Halloween! The kids have been going through a phase where they love to dress up...so Halloween meant they got to put on their favorite costumes. And yes, I said costumeS because some of them wore a different one to each Halloween event we went to. I have to admit that I had a lot of fun dressing them up too. Now if only I could figure out a way to keep my hands out of the candy bowls, I would like Halloween a little bit more.
Emma and two of her friends dressed up as Cindy Lou Who from 'How the Grinch Stole Christmas.' They were soooo cute!

This is Emma, Aaron (batman), and Abigail (Minnie Mouse) before they left for school on Halloween. I was grateful their school let them dress up because some of the other elementary schools in town didn't allow the students to wear costumes.

Abigail striking one of her many poses.

Steven got to be the bumble bee that was in the closet. I think everyone of the kids has been this for their first Halloween. I've definately gotten my money's worth out of it. :)

Jacob has really gotten into Toy Story lately so he wanted to be Buzz Lightyear. Luckily, a friend of mine had this costume so we got to borrow it. Jacob was so excited! It was a fun Halloween for everyone!

Camping in Santa Fe

This past weekend, Josh took the kids camping and hiking up in Santa Fe...all four of them. Of course I still had the baby, but he almost doesn't count...he's just part of me. They left early Friday morning and didn't get back until dinner time on Saturday. It was so quiet and I loved every minute of it. Of course I missed them...but it was sure nice to clean the house and then not need to clean it for a WHOLE day. Simple pleasures, I say. They all had a blast and are planning another trip in the near future. Abigail picked me some flowers. However, Josh wouldn't let her brintg them home to me so she settled for taking a picture with them instead. :)

Getting ready to go hiking. They all got new hiking packs which they were so proud of.

And they're off.

At the tent. Apparently it's a little chilly in Santa Fe in August. I wish we had that problem here.

Jacob had flowers for me too. What sweet kids I have!

All I wanna do is...Dance, Dance!

I'm finally putting up some recital pictures from last May. I work like the tortoise...slow and steady.
Emma was the 'Mother Duck' for one of the younger classes. It was quite cute!

Emma's tap number.

Abigail, doing what she does best...posing!

Emma's ballet class

This is Emma the night she got back from competition. I just LOVE her eyelashes!

Farewell to friends

Because it was requested (not because they are flattering), I am posting some pictures of my wonderful friend and her family. They stayed with us a few night before they left the rolling plains of Clovis, NM for the fast-paced life of the city. We cleaned her house, went out for a birthday dinner, and let the kids spent some quality time together. The girls camped out in our "Huntsman hotel." It was a blast!
Unfortunately this is the only picture I have of the two of us. It was early in the morning, neither of us have make-up on (obviously), and we were a bit emotional.

Abby had so much fun living down the street from her friend. They would walk back and forth to play with each other all the time! Abby still talks about her and is trying to plan a visit out to Washington DC now.

Jacob and his pal. This picture makes me laugh because I always think of her with her fingers in her mouth. :)

Best buds!

Abby waving good-bye as Tina is drivin away with three girls in the car, pulling a trailer....by herself. Only Tina! Gotta love her!

Six Mile Cypress

While at my Dad's, the whole group went on a nature walk at Six Mile Cypress. What we thought would be a quick walk through some greenery turned into an hour and a half lecture in the jungle. The kids had a blast...my dad and I weren't quite as excited about it. Emma really like talking with our guide. She asked lots of questions which is one reason it took so long. Now that it's checked off my list, we don't have to go back next year. :) My dad with the kids. They were sitting on the dock by the alligator pond. Unfortunately we didn't see any alligators.

The binoculars were a hit!

This is what we did for an hour an a half. And before you go thinking my dad is a softy...he only held the baby so I could snap a few pictures. Once I was done, the baby was promptly handed over to me.

Aaron's last soccer game and party

This year things got a little crazy at the end. Aaron was playing soccer and baseball. Emma and Abby were dancing. And Josh had gone TDY to the NCO Academy. Fortunately, I did take a few pictures at Aaron's last soccer game so we do have some kind of documentation of his playing this year.
Aaron's whole team...well, someone's missing. They loved playing!

Aaron and his coach...he was a gentle lion. All bark and no bite.

What's a party without pizza and soda?

Aaron did pretty well this year. He had a lot more control of the ball, learned a lot more about teamwork (passing, etc.), and he made a fair amount of goals. We just registered for the Fall season yesterday. Let the craziness begin!

Abby loved the games for social reasons. At that game she was playing with her friend Hannah. This year she will be playing...and I might even be coaching. Yikes!

Steven growing up...

It's hard to believe that the summer is almost over. The older I get, the faster the time seems to pass. Every time I turn around, it seems that my kids are growing like weeds. Last week Steven turned 6 months old. He rolls like a champ and can scoot around a room like an inchworm. He gets up on all fours and rocks back and forth, but he's not real sure where to go from there. He usually just falls forward...thus the inchworm. He's sitting up and eating baby food...which can get pretty messy. I've been negligent on my blogging, but I plan to repent and post daily pictures of our summer adventures until I catch up. We'll see how that goes. :) Here's some shots of Steven during this summer.
Smiling at Grandfather.

Relaxing at Papa's

Happy after eating lunch...I'm not sure where he get's the orange color in his hair. Aaron had it too.

Sitting up.

What a happy boy he is!...And he's sleeping through the night. He's a keeper!

Best friends

Last night Steven and I were going around to all of the kids and singing them songs at bedtime...well, I was singing, he was tagging along. In Aaron's room, he was holding Steven's hand while we sang. He and I visited for a few minutes after I had finished, and this is one thing he told me:
"Mom, you're Steven's best friend now. But when he gets older, he'll be the boys' best friend and we'll all go to the Father-son campout together."
I'm glad they're still excited about being friends with each other....and I hope they always will be!
At Aaron's last soccer game...poor little fellow gets drug around everywhere. Good thing he's such a happy boy!

Saturday night we had a potluck picnic at the park. It was tons of fun, but by the end Steven was plum tuckered out! They're so cute when they're sleeping!