First Day of School 2014!

I knew that August would fly by and sure enough, it felt like we had barely returned from our Utah trip when it was time for school to begin again! 
We met the teachers on Thursday, Aug. 21.  Megan's teacher is Ms. White.  She is new to our school but seems very affectionate and Megan seemed happy to meet her.  Megan was excited to see a few familiar faces in her class this year--friends from last year, a friend from church, and a friend from the neighborhood.  That is a big help for my anxious girl.  She was happy on the first morning. 
Brooke's teacher is Ms. Dorsett who taught 1st grade last year.  She also seems nice.  Brooke doesn't have anyone she already knows in class, but for her, that is probably a good thing (at least for her behavior--she loves to chat!).  She was a little nervous at the meet the teacher night, but she seemed thrilled on the first day.

Dan worked from home on the first day so he could be there to walk the girls in and welcome them home.  It was an exciting morning.  And our usual Monday grocery swap seemed so quiet without the 4 oldest kids there! 

Brooke showing off the dress she picked out with Grandma.  She was happy we arrived at the same time as her old Joy School friends Breanna and Maddie.

Megan was excited to see Megan T before heading in to class.

3 big kindergarteners!

We dropped Brooke off first.  She held my hand a little tighter than usual but didn't protest when we said goodbye.

Megan decided she wasn't having the desk pic this year.  I took one anyway.  I'm just that kind of mom :).  She seemed happy to be returning to school and was excited to know her way around this year.

Easter Week 2014

Easter is becoming one of my favorite holidays.  I just love reflecting on the life, death, and resurrection of Christ. 
We had a family night about Easter on Monday (April 14), but ran out of time to color eggs.  Mondays are busy with dance followed by family night followed by bedtime!

So we decorated eggs on Tuesday April 15 before dinner.  The kids loved it.  My sister Jamie has been posting pictures of her beautiful Ukrainian eggs all month, and we thought it would be fun to use regular dyes and sharpies to achieve a similar effect (but with less fire/wax/clothes-ruining-dye).  I had fun decorating my eggs and the kids LOVED it.

Daddy and daughters...

Mommy and her boy...

Megan let me use a curling iron to do her hair for school on Wednesday April 16.  I was hopeful she'd let me do it again for Easter Sunday, but she wasn't having it.  I think it makes her look so grown up!

Megan had the day off for good Friday and we had a busy day with a birthday party in the morning, playdates for Brooke and Megan, and enjoying the amazing weather at the park in the afternoon.

Then on Saturday April 19, we had a fun Easter party with Dad and Sally at their home.  They heated the pool and we all swam when we arrived for a few hours.  After a delicious and beautifully laid Easter dinner, we headed to the yard for egg hunting, the annual raw egg toss, and chatting in the fantastic spring weather.  I grabbed a few pics while we were outside (but missed Dad, Sally, and Tyler--the ones who actually live there!). 

Candy and Molly

Megan and Chloe

Dan and Brookie

Carrie and Jack

Shad and Amy

Zach and Hailey

Sunday morning the kids were up around 6:15, but we convinced them to snuggle with us til 7 since Jack was still sleeping.  The Easter Bunny left us yummy treats and the kids were so excited to find eggs (10 each) and their baskets.

Their baskets held a new little book for each girl and new goggles for swim season.

And I needed one shot of all of our beautiful eggs before they became deviled eggs for our Easter dinner :)

It was nice to have church at 11 this year since it gave us time to get ready and do a few pictures before church.  The sun was bright and I should have found a shadier spot...so we got lots of cute, squinty eyes!

My favorite of them all:

The kids weren't having anymore pictures, so Dan and I documented that we were there with our most compliant kid--thanks Jack! 

Then we came inside and took the most beautiful pictures of my boy.  I just LOVE them.  

4 months!

Our little boy is already 4 months old!  He is so much more smiley and social this month.  He loves to be talked to.  He is still so easy to please.  He is happy to be held, happy to be chilling in the hi-chair and observing his sisters, happy in the carseat, happy to be here.  He has started sleeping through the night more consistently (to bed between 7:30 and 8:30 and waking up around 6:30) and he takes little catnaps when we are on the go in the mornings and snuggles with me to take a longer nap in the afternoon.  His eyes are definitely blue and he has his Daddy's long eyelashes.  He loves his binky and while he keeps trying to find his thumb, I keep trying to take it out and keep him a binky boy.  We'll see what happens there :).  He is swaddled for bedtime and is so snuggly.  He loves bathtime and is starting to splash around.  He is our big boy--16.12 lbs (64th percentile), 26.5 in (94th percentile) and we are loving watching him grow!

March 1

March 4--4 month birthday

Mantel Pictures

I hadn't updated the pictures above the fireplace since Candy was about 6 months old.  It was time to take some new pictures!
I love these kids.  I'm so glad I get to be their Mom and spend so much time with them everyday.

Jack on Mar. 1, a few days shy of 4 months old

Candy on Feb. 23, 2 years and 7 months

Brooke on Feb. 23, 4 years and 7 months

Megan on Feb. 23, 6 years and 4 months

I learned another new hairstyle in February.  I tried it out on Brookie and her best bud on Feb. 27.

Valentine's Week

Dan and I had an AWESOME Valentine's date on Feb. 7 to a fancy French restaurant.  We dressed up and thoroughly enjoyed being together and trying some delicious new food. Valentine's week itself was a little lonely this year as Dan was in Utah for work.  It was the first time in a long time that I stayed home the whole time he was gone (instead of going to visit my sister).  It wasn't so bad--things don't feel as empty when there are four kids in the house with me!

While Dan was gone, Jack tried out the doorway bouncer for the first time (Feb. 12).  He seemed happy enough there, but after a few minutes began sinking lower and lower so we called it a day. 

Sweet Brookie.  At 4 1/2 she can be challenging at times, but very capable and fun overall.  She has a special spot in her heart for her brother.  I love watching them together.

Oh that Candy.  She's definitely acting like a 2 year old these days but she keeps us laughing.  She also loves her brother but has to be constantly reminded to be gentle.

Look at that face. What Mom?  I wasn't going to swing him...really I wasn't!

Dan's sister posted a picture of a cute Valentine's hair-do, so I copied her for Megan on Valentine's day.  Then, when I was watching our best buds in the morning, I did it 4 more times.  It was fun :).  Ashley watched my kids later in the day so I could go enjoy Megan's friendship party.  I love watching her interact with her classmates.  She is always so excited to show me where she sits and what they have been working on.  She is very comfortable in her classroom and loves her teacher.  I'm so glad she is happy there. 

Candy, 2 T girls, and Brooke.  Pretty cute.

I keep trying to get a picture of Jack smiling at bedtime, but it's been a challenge!  For some reason, anytime I try, Dan is not home and I can't keep him smiling AND looking at the camera.  Ah well.  Our best try from Feb. 15.  Dan made it home after church on Feb. 16.  Yay!

100th Day

Megan's 100th Day of Kindergarten was on Feb. 10, 2014.  It got pushed back a bit after our two "ice/snow" days a few weeks back. 
All the kindergarteners needed to wear a shirt with 100 of something on it.  Megan decided she wanted a peacock with 100 feathers.  Her primary teacher last year would wear these peacock feather earrings and Megan thought they were the coolest things ever. 
I think the shirt turned out pretty cute.  I printed a peacock out and traced it onto the shirt with a pen and then went over it w/fabric paint.  Then I cut a piece of felt the same size as the feathers of the peacock and sewed 5 rows of 20 feathers onto it.  Then I just safety pinned the felt piece with all the feathers onto it (so I'll be able to remove it for washing). That's a lot of feathers in a little area! 
I think it's amazing how much she's grown up since August.  She had a great 100s day!  They did a parade in their shirts, wore "100" glasses and a "100" hat and colored a paper with 100 things on it.

Meanwhile back at home, Jack was smothered with love from his sisters.  Brooke especially has a soft spot for her baby brother and loves to hold him.  They were both kissing his little cheeks, but I couldn't catch them at the same time :).  

"Chatsick"

Candy has been extremely fascinated by my makeup lately.  She almost always finds her way into my bathroom when I'm getting ready and asks for her own "chatsick".  So I wasn't too surprised when she'd been quiet for a few minutes and came out looking like this on Feb. 8.  She was pretty proud.
 And I was reminded of when Brookie did the same thing a while back.