Surprise 7th Birthday Party!!

Bennett's 7th birthday coincided with finishing his 1st grad curriculum, so we knew we HAD to throw him a party. We usually have a family party, but this year we invited 3 other families with boys that Bennett really likes, and we made it a SURPRISE party. The little guy is pretty nosey, so keeping it under wraps was hard when people are responding to emails that are titled, "Bennett's Surprise Party." More than once I had to cover my screen and tell him to walk away. It remained a secret mostly because I didn't do anything for it until he left to spend the night at my parent's house. His other big surprise was a trampoline. It was quite a wonderful day, although Emma had a fever and wasn't feeling well. My mom was nice enough to hold her most of the time. The kids enjoyed hot dogs, chips, soda, cupcakes and all sorts of unhealthy stuff we don't get very often. Let's just say Bennett is still talking about how much he likes junk food.












We had a birthday lunch for Bennett on his real birthday. His birthday meal was tacos, his favorite, and root beer floats, which he had never had before but wanted to try. I think it was a birthday weekend he won't soon forget.

Easter Pictures

We asked a friend from church (Thanks, Denise!) to take some family pictures after the service. I am never too hopeful of getting a good one because someone is always looking away or doing something weird, or crying (I never blame the photographer. I think it is next to impossible!) Ellie had a pretty sour look on her face for most of the pictures, but there were a couple of good ones!

Emma Turned One!!

Our baby isn't a "baby" anymore, although she would beg to differ. She is a lap baby. She loves to be carried around and is content to just sit in my lap which doesn't happen very often because I am usually on the move! Jeromy's parents spent the last week with us, and we had a party for her with my parents too. It was such a nice celebration. She seemed to really understand that something special was going on, a lot more than I remember with my other one year olds. She hasn't eaten many solids yet, so I didn't know if she would be able to eat a cupcake, but she ate that thing like she has been doing it for a while! She LOVES books, especially turning pages, so she was thrilled to receive some new ones for her birthday. (The other kids were pretty thrilled with some new toys too. They play with them as much as the baby does!)







She is offically a walker now too. She doesn't crawl anymore. Emma is our first one to be pigeon-toed. I was a bit alarmed at first, but I did some research about it, and it isn't so bad that she trips herself, which is kind of the test of seriousness. As the leg bones grow, they tend to straighten out. She is a quiet little one and so very mellow. She loves her sister's room and can be found playing by herself with their dollhouse quiet frequently. We love our little baby and look forward to seeing her grow and flourish. She is cherished by our family, and we are thankful for our littlest one!