The cutest kids

Every child has several great sleeping pictures. This is the latest great one of Little T. He had skipped his nap that day and was watching cartoons when he fell asleep with his feet tucked under him in a seated/kneeling position.

It reminded me of this good picture of Big T. last summer when he was 6 during our trip to the Redwoods. My favorite part about this one was that he woke up and said that he was never asleep but we had stopped the van, unloaded our stuff, taken the picture and then tried to wake him up. He was most definately asleep.

Family Home Evening Activity

We've been trying to get creative with our FHE activities. The kids always "want" to do a Wii tournament or Wii time but this isn't quite the "family time" we expect from a FHE activity. So, one day we made paper airplanes and had competitions down the hall. Another time we did some arm wrestling (I think this was actually a precursor to the activity but this pictures are just great). The kids all had so much fun doing this. Hmmm... is it because I have 4 boys?

Big T.'s 7th Birthday

Today Big T. turned 7. We didn't plan a kid party (yet?) but made it a special day for him by:
making what he wanted for breakfast, taking him (and his brothers) on a surprise bowling outing, letting him choose dinner, watching a movie, and having cake and ice cream. For breakfast he chose homemade wheat waffles and for dinner he chose cheese pizza with root beer (although he ended up drinking the orange soda). We rented Alvin and the Chipmunks the Squeekwal and ate our dinner in the living room while we watched TV. It was a fun day. Can't believe a baptism for him is only 1 year away.

Combined Birthday Party

We had a combined family birthday get together with the family that lives close for Tim and Big J. (who is now 11!!) It sure is nice to have family close by.

Isn't this the cutest little kid. He has a really adorable fake smile that he'll do if you ask him. This is actually a normal smile.

The kids and their cousins had fun playing together outside. We were glad to have good weather (it's always a gamble in March).

Good Grades Tradition

Each semester when the kids get report cards they can earn dinner. Ok, ok, I mean a special dinner . . . we do feed our kids dinner each day. If they have all A's and B's then they get to choose to go to dinner wherever they want. Tim and I are glad when they choose the same place because then we don't have 3 different dinners to go to. Not the case this time. Big J. chose Round Table, Little J. chose Olive Garden (mmmm . . . good food), and Big T. chose Pizza Factory. It takes a few weeks to get those all in but the kids enjoy it and so do we. It's good motivation for them.

Birthday Time

My oldest had a birthday and he is now 11!!! Since his birthday was Sunday we did some celebrating on Friday. He and I went on a sort of "date" and we had lunch and a treat and did a little shopping. Saturday night the family went out to Olive Garden because that's where Little J. chose to go since he got good grades (I'll do another post about that) so after we had the employees sing and bring a cake. We had a great time and I always enjoy getting compliments about how polite my kids are in public. Sunday we opened presents and had another cake. He got money, clothes, a book, a puzzle, hot wheels tracks, and his new Boy Scout Handbook. He'll be starting 11 year old scouts this Tuesday and so we're excited to start that grand adventure.

Happy Birthday to Me!

I've had a very happy birthday. Last night my family went to dinner with my Mom and Dad, Mark and Katy and all the kids. I sure enjoy having family close by so that we can get together on special occassions. I got some nice gifts including a finger crocheted scarf made by my 5 year old niece. Thanks everyone for the nice gifts. Used my new Vita Mix to make a low fat alfredo sauce and I'm excited to use it to try all kinds of new things. I'm thankful for all my boys; they are really good to me. Even though we had a Scout thing this afternoon, I got a nap when we got home (you can't deny a birthday girl a nap) and I got a lot of back rubs and kind words. Thanks everyone for the birthday wishes, presents, and time together. Cheers to another great 20 years (oh, wait, maybe my math is off . . . oh well, the specific number isn't important). Thanks again everyone!!!