Day 327/365 ~ 2012

Thanksgiving.

 Much to be Thankful for.

 

We had a lovely Thanksgiving Day.

 



Thankful for family present with us...







And for family present in our hearts...



 

Thankful for plenty to eat...





And fun family traditions...

 

Much to be thankful for.

Day 308/365 ~ 2012

10am soccer game
Noon End of season soccer party
4:30 Basketball practice, followed by a game
6:00 Michelle & Isaiah's Birthday celebration

Life is busy (but fun) these days!

 Andrew is playing Basketball with some of his church friends.  What fun for him (and us!)  They couldn't be cuter and it's fun to see their individual personalities on the court.  Andrew rolled his ankle so was having a bit of a challenging time playing, but he still had fun and was happy that Aunt michelle & Uncle mike and cousins were there to watch!  (Andrew is SO accident prone right now!  I honestly think he has been to the nurse at least ten times since the beginning of the year.  Even his teacher commented on it!)



Dan had fun with his nephews.  Noah has my Dad's coloring.  Such a darling little guy.



Couldn't pass up this great expression.
Michelle liked her gift. :)



I've been SO excited to give it to her.
Truth be told, I'd like to have kept it for myself! :)



Isaiah is a decade old. Unbelievable.
He is such a sweet, sweet boy.
I clearly remember the excitement on the day of his birth and seeing him for the first time.
Mom and I went to get a birthday cake for him and stood in the bakery trying to figure out how to spell "Isaiah" (it was so funny) and we spelled it wrong! :)



We enjoyed a delicious ham dinner and topped it off with a spice cake.
Happy Birthday Isaiah & Michelle!
I love you both!

Day 253/365 ~ 2012

Happy 7th Birthday, Noah Bean!
We love you so much!!! 

Day 252/365 ~ 2012

I just love this picture.
Buddies through and through.
We watched Andrew's first soccer game, then scooted off as quick as we could to catch Noah's game.
There is just something about this pair at this particular age that is so fun.
They are both such characters!

Day 210/365 ~ 2012

Happy Birthday party day, Andrew!!!
A "Cheerful Monster Party" at Chuck E Cheese was Andrew's request.
I'm not a fan of Chuck E. Cheese.  To put it nicely.
But he really wanted his party there...and a shot at that 1000 ticket in the "ticket blaster."



Ready for the party!





The kids had a fantastic time playing games.  It was fun seeing them scurry all around with their little cups of tokens.



Lots of excitement with Chuck E. at the cake. :)



We know so many sweet little kids.



Then it was time...the moment Andrew had waited for...the Ticket Blaster!!! (Can you see his big smile in the photo?)  We had discussed a strategy before the party. Tuck in the shirt, and shove the tickets down the front of his shirt. Those tickets started swirling like crazy and I thought there's no way he'll even get one!



But he did!  He was SO happy when he got out and started pulling the tickets out of his shirt and unfolded one to find that it was the 1000 ticket!!



I was SO happy for him.
SO, so so happy.

He "bought" a plush space "Angry Bird" with his tickets and is still completely thrilled over it.
I think this will be one of those fantastic childhood memories that he won't forget.

I'm happy we went to Chuck E Cheese after all.

:)

PS.  This one's for you, Dan....

Day 202/365~2012

"Camp Aunt Kathy" kicked off with a trip to the zoo.
I took all 5 kids by myself.  It was an adventure!!
I was one tired Aunt/Mama when it was over, but glad we did it.
(I slept for 11 hours that night!)



Then it was home for some cake baking lessons.
Isaiah and Matthew made this cake (mostly) by themselves!

Day 192/365 ~ 2012

I enjoyed getting texts with photos from Grammie of the kids' adventures. And also loved this one from Dale (thank you!) The cousins were all staying with two sets of grandparents and met up at "Grandma Glenda & Uncle Dale"'s house to swim! They were SO excited about this ~ I am still hearing about it!

Thank you, Dale & Glenda ~ this was a real treat for the kids! And thank you, Grammie & Grandpa for the many other fun adventures!  The kids had a fantastic time!!!

Day 173/365 ~ 2012

Summer Day 1:
Donuts, Swimming, scootering, Popsicles, roller skating, and a lemonade stand! All with the cousins. Matthew & Isaiah worked hard at their lemonade stand (that was unplanned and spontaneously thrown together with some things I had bought last year. I'm trying to be less planned and more spontaneous). It worked great! They had a lot of fun and worked hard!

That little girl in the tutu swimsuit was a repeat customer. :)

Day 154/365~2012

Birthday party day!!!



Matthew chose a Mario themed swim party for his 9th birthday.



Matthew & His buddies...a mix of family, friends from pre school days and friends from school.



The chocolate mustaches were a hit. :)






The kids enjoyed cupcakes & ice cream & then were off to swim.  They had a great time!  (And I was quite relieved to finish our last birthday party!)



Happy Birthday sweet boy!

Day 146/365 ~ 2012

Mike turned 40!
It doesn't seem possible, as we remember Mom turning 40! A significant milestone required some special fun to celebrate. With the big bash planned for the following night, our family gathered to celebrate over dinner. All in black to mourn the passing of Mike's youth. :) That is, all except Mike who didn't know we'd be all in black. :)







Steak, Wicked shrimp, salad & baked potatoes followed by Snickerdoodle Cake for dessert!  It was a nice to be gathered together.



Happy Birthday!!



Mike's new kicks. This is very Mike at 40.

Day 133/365 ~ 2012

Mike, Michelle, Isaiah and Noah came to see Matthew's baseball game.
It was so nice of them to make the drive to support Matthew ~ who got 3 hits (for 3 at bats) this game!
I was really proud of him!
I especially enjoyed having Michelle to chat with in the stands. :)

Day 112/365 ~ 2012

A Portland Timbers game with Mike & Isaiah!
The guys had a fantastic time & returned home very happy.
Matthew's favorite part:  Singing "You are my sunshine" at the 80th minute mark.