Christmas/Cousins Visit

My brother and his family came all the way from Canada to visit for Christmas. We had a wild time with all the kids (8 of them ranging from 5 months- 5 1/2 years).

My brother with my niece Wren. She loves babies and was wanting to hold Enna.

My beautiful Mom with Nora. Nora is constantly trying to get my mom to play in her imaginary world. 

The busy room full of wrapped toys and baby toys! :) 

Nora wanted to dance to the Christmas carols we were singing. She had recently watched the Nutcracker ballet which was the inspiration for her dancing. 

One of the twin babies (my sister's boys)

I kept catching these sweet pictures of Nora standing by the tree watching all the activity.

The boys sitting together,sharing a sweet moment

And the other twin...little Eli, such a sweet little miracle

Opening presents with the cousins!

One of the best moments was when Eli started ripping the wrapping paper and laughing. There's nothing better than a baby's belly laugh.

Nora pretending to be a present

Nora had a Rapunzel/Tangled theme this Christmas. After getting dressed up she wanted us to all sing "Ten Thousand Reasons/Bless the Lord Oh My Soul" while she danced yet again.

The boys were busy "excavating" dinosaurs. They pounded away for quite awhile. It was noisy, but kept them pretty busy.

Sweet little Wren

The two oldest--they are just about 2 months apart in age and really enjoyed each other this year.

The middle 2 are exactly 2 months apart in age and had a great time playing all sorts of make believe games. Caspian would play dolls and house with her and they kept on for hours. Nora loved it!

All the babies with their grandparents! 

Xan-almost 6, Aidan-5 1/2, Caspian-3 1/2, Nora-3, Wren-16 months, Lane-8 months, Eli-8 months, and Enna-5 months

Fourth of July

We had a really great holiday this year. Firstly, Seth and I went out to a bed and breakfast the night of the 3rd and had a nice little "last" getaway. Then, we met up with the kids and Seth's parents and spent the afternoon at the pool.

We decided it would be fun to head out to a local event and watch fireworks in the evening. It was a definite hit with the kids. There was live music and they loved dancing around in the grass while we waited for it to get dark.

I was so glad that the weather was cooler and less humid than it's been. Here's my 37 week belly which seems to get bigger by the day!

Nora was so sweet and sat reading books on the blanket for a little while. Then, she danced once the music started. I love the second photo of her loving on her little baby and dancing with her. This little girl is going to love having a baby sister, she just doesn't realize it yet!

Aidan and Seth played a lot of frisbee while we waited. While Aidan is still figuring out how to catch a frisbee, he is really good at throwing and much better than I am (which honestly isn't saying a whole lot, but still, he's only 5). :)

The fireworks lasted for about 20 minutes. It was really fun and the kids LOVED them this year. We've had some iffy years of fearfulness and uncertainty, but this is the first year I can definitely say they both loved the experience. As I'm typing this Aidan said, "Are those the fireworks? I hope I can see them again someday."

Easter 2013

This year I had the privilege of hosting everyone at our house for Easter. We decided to paint our kitchen the week before so we would have a fresh look.  I love the new color and it was perfect for our Easter lunch. We had 10 people (8 adults, 2 children), so we opted for 2 tables because we didn't have one big enough. I painted some mason jars and chose burlap and lace for my other table (2 very simple diy projects).

They day started out with Seth heading off to church early to play music in the 2 services while I stayed home with the kids and got ready to attend the later service. I tried snapping a few pictures of the kids before we left, but was unsuccessful. Aidan looks like he is being tortured. :)

Nora was pretty excited to wear her new sandals to church. I even painted her toenails which was a huge deal for her and she proudly showed them to her classroom teacher. I am so glad it was a sunny day!

After church we spent some time waiting for our family to show up. The kids played in the back of the truck and Nora destroyed her neatly braided hair and headband.

Did I mention that I am so excited that I finally got a new lens for my camera? :) And that my husband looks great with a beard?

My mom was the first to arrive and the kids were so happy to see her because she had been gone for 2 weeks in Israel. Nora, my affectionate one, was ready with a big hug for her "Mimi."

After everyone arrived, we started grilling the meat and getting the other food warmed up and ready. I was actually mostly prepared and had little to do on the actual day which was great for me. We had a nice relaxing lunch and spend the rest of the day outside jumping on the trampoline (I think almost everyone took a turn with the kids--except me that is) and enjoying the sunshine. We had a small egg hunt with the kids and also painted some eggs although I think the real highlight of the day was the leisurely afternoon sitting outside enjoying everyone's company.

Christmas 2012

We had a fun surprise for Christmas! My sister and her now new hubby brought their twin mini goats and the goat mama to visit. We had our own petting zoo set up in the garage! :) 

Nora loved the goats and went out to visit them several times that day. Aidan, however,was freaked out about them and it took all day to convince him to go in the pen. I guess by the time we got him in there we had put the camera away. 

We did have a nice day together and I thankfully felt pretty well. The kids enjoyed opening presents and being at Mimi's house. We also went to visit Seth's family the following day (which was actually Christmas Day), but have no pictures because my camera lens is broken and I've been  relying on my parent's point and shoot for now.