A 6 Year Old?!?

Well, he's officially 6! It's been a long wait and a lot of excitement, but this week we have a 6 year old in the house!

We started the week off with a little party! His Kindergarten buddies met us at the local rec center for cake and goodies and then some basketball. He's been on his first basketball team and loving it. It was the basis for the basketball theme he picked this year! 

We finished off with celebrating on his real day. We had all the traditions of busting through the bedroom door, and waiting all day for Daddy to get home to open gifts. (That's a tough one!) This year,  he chose to eat at Rubio's and we got ice cream at McDonald's and some play time. Not a bad way to celebrate being 6!

(And just because it's been so long since I've posted, I decided to add this photo to prove the other 2 boys are alive and well!)

Wow! 6 years old now, buddy! Time sure is flying. You have really grown in so many ways this past year. Now in Kindergarten- doing so much of the things you've watched your big brother do. Every day you are so excited to head out the door. You are an eager learner and pick up things quickly. Your biggest complaint is that I won't let you stay for the Enrichment time (stay-all-day program). You are intense...You play hard, you laugh hard and you love hard! You bring so much energy and laughter to our house. You definitely raise the noise level a few notches too! 

But just as you can be loud and crazy, you have the kindest heart. You ask me how you can help me when you see I am stressed out. You offer some of the sweetest and most heartfelt prayers for people you've never met. You run to your baby brother's side when he's crying or upset. 

As you are growing before my eyes, you are developing into such a great kid! I love that you have your two-sides- loving life and loving people. Can't wait for at least 60 more years of being your mom!

Bronco's Birthday Party

One of the things I enjoy about the kids' birthdays is to make great fun out of the theme they choose. This year, Biggest Brother chose a Bronco's Football Birthday Party- Sleepover! So, after a bit of research, this is what we came up with....

We lucked out with a bunch of football themed decor from the Dollar Store since it was Football season. I made a little scoreboard to cover up a picture that hangs by the dining room table. We asked all the boys to wear their favorite jersey- funny they all wore Broncos! 

He only invited 4 friends since it was a sleepover. It was our first and though they were good, I'm glad we kept that number down a bit! Come midnight- 4 extra boys in the house seemed like 40! (Big Brother got to invite a friend, too- but he didn't spend the night. We usually let him invite a friend to keep him busy and not bugging the older boys, but somehow it doesn't always work to our advantage!)

After a quick dinner of pizza, we headed to the Batting Cages. We were fortunate with weather. The skies looked black and ominous, but the rain stayed away from our little part of town! Luckily, we had plenty of time outdoors to try to burn off some of their energy!

After that, they played some football. It's nice at their age that they can organize activities without us having to lead the whole thing!

Next, we headed to a nearby park. By this time, it was raining. The plan was to launch water balloons with a new launcher he got for his birthday. But, since they were wet in the rain anyways, they decided it would be more fun to run into the balloons being launched. After they were good and drenched, they finished off with some fun at the park and we headed home for cake and gifts.

Around 10pm, they weren't settling down at all. They had already played with his new Glow in the Dark Nerf football set, played with these glow stick balls I bought and were starting to get extra rowdy.  I had planned a few "Minute to Win It" games, just in case this happened!

The first was to move the oreo from their forehead to their mouths. Another was to balance dice on a popsicle stick. Another was moving Smarties from one plate to another. I think there were more, but by now I can't remember them and don't have any photos to remind myself! They had fun, but it went quickly. So, we through in a movie. They all started to get sleepy and I suggested we watch the rest in the morning (around 11:45pm). They got all ready for bed and must have gotten a second wind. That is when they really got going! They all slept in the basement, but we could hear them up in our room! Apparently, one of them (maybe you can guess from the photos above) was extra wild and was rolling over the rest of the kids. I'm pretty sure there was a lot of silliness from kids and gas- we'll leave it at that!

I was the bad guy and went down around 12:30 to get them to settle down. We didn't hear much again until around 7:30am. They finished the movie, ate some chocolate chip pancakes and played Wii Just Dance until their parents came. A couple went to church with us, which made it the longest birthday party we've ever hosted!

But, probably the funnest according to Biggest Brother! (Can't wait for next year?!?)

The Real Birthday Day!

On his real birthday, we all woke up pretty early. In years past, we've made him wait for Kevin to get off work to open gifts. This year, we were all up and just let him open them all before school. He really wanted a Ripstik, a science kit, and money to save for an iPad mini. Well, he got that and more! Our extended family is always so generous to him and he got books (loves Magic Treehouse books right now), money for his iPad, science kits and we also got him a Rainbow Loom and Ripstik. He has wanted an Under Armour shirt for a long time, so that happened to be a favorite gift as well!

It has become a tradition for me to bring Chick-Fil-A up to the school for his lunch. I always feel bad for the kids around us, because school lunch pales in comparison! This year, the Little Man and The Middle One came too!

At the end of lunch, the entire cafeteria yelled, "Happy Birthday" to him. They still make it fun to be at school on your birthday.

His birthday fell on the same night as Awanas. He didn't want to go, but since we'd done our gifts earlier that day and he'd studied and memorized, he went after all. After he got home, we sang and celebrated with his Bronco cupcakes and then he (full of sugar and hyper) tried to fall asleep!

These are the bracelets they are making with the Rainbow Loom. Since then, they've watched countless videos on YouTube and learned all different designs. It keeps them away from too much screen-time, so I am happy they have found a fun little hobby. They give them away to friends at school all the time- even made a bunch to give to kids affected by the recent flooding nearby. They remind me of the old friendship bracelets we used to make with thread and knots and braids- but these are so much faster and a lot of fun!

Pre-Birthday Celebration

In our house, it seems like it's not just a birth-day, it's more like a birth-week or longer!

So, Biggest Brother's birth-week began this past weekend. He had been asking to go to the driving range. He inherited some golf clubs from a family friend and wanted to put them to good use. So, we went...

After a couple of buckets of balls and (me) going cRaZy chasing the littlest one around, they headed to the putting green for some practice. This is where my middle guy yells- "Mommy, I just got a hole in 10!!!" We had a lot of talks about golf etiquette and how golf is a quiet sport. Then, it was just time to go. Next time, it might be best to leave this for the older crowd only!

And just because they are cute...

 Lastly, this has nothing to do with birthdays! My neighbor called me over the other day and wanted to let me know that he thought my boys were sneaking food and leaving the wrappers in my window sill. Well, this is what he was noticing...

These are actually full and not from the big boys at all. Each day, the Littlest Guy empties my pantry through the slats in our blinds. Applesauce, granola bars, etc- all basking in the sun!

Happy 1st Birthday

Happy 1st Birthday to our greatest surprise!

It was one year ago that the greatest surprise of our family joined us! Though you were a surprise to us, you were no surprise to God. I will be honest that I had many fears about adding another little man to our family. We had just turned a corner from baby/toddler hood into the early school years and things were starting to get just a bit easier. I was finally sleeping all night for most nights and we had said goodbye to all our baby gear and baby days. So we thought!

God took what I thought would be our little family and shook it up a bit. But, when he was done and life settled back in- it was settled in more beautifully and fully than it was before!

Being your mom has given me the chance to slow down and enjoy the moments of baby-life again. To experience all the firsts - just one more time. To cuddle just a little longer. To know love just a little deeper. To see the miracle of life unfold again. 

When your big brothers were little the days were sweet, but often it was hard to imagine a time when life wouldn't feel so demanding. Well, that time came and then I missed those cuddly sweet baby days so much! Being your mom has let me experience that all over again, but this time with a new perspective of how fleeting these moments really are. 

This year has been so full- full of change and growth; full of wonder and sweetness. We have watched you grow from a sleepy little baby who could hardly wake up to eat into a curious, on-the-go, into everything little guy toddling all over the place!

But, from the first moment we saw you - you have nestled your way into the depths of our hearts. What a great surprise you are!

Happy 1st Birthday Little Man!

Love,

Mommy

We actually celebrated your first birthday at Laguna Beach, in California. We were on our family vacation and it was a fun day to be with you. We went to my friend's house for dinner and they surprised us with a cake and your first cupcake (the bottom pictures). We waited until we were home to do our traditional family celebration and decorated your door (which you loved to walk through!)  We got you a basketball hoop and a really big ball- since that is the only thing you love more than food right now! We ended our celebration with some more sugar and mess! I'd say you were a lucky 1 year old this year. 

Now that you are one:

- You shake your head "no" when we tell you "no" and laugh and continue to do what we don't want you to do!

- You love animals, especially dogs, but you are afraid of them too. You get just as close as you can without touching and then cry when they come any closer!

-You are starting to be so much more aware of things and learning new things every day.

-You are falling asleep on your own for naps and bedtime. Finally sleeping in past 5:30 in the morning and slowly moving towards one long nap in the day.

-You love to play with your brothers and to be outside. You love to investigate everything by putting it in your mouth.

-You love balls. It's your only word so far. All sizes, all colors, all sports, all balls. You endured a long summer of baseball games for your brothers and now know how to set the ball on the "T"and hit it off. Not bad for a little guy!

-You would eat all day if I let you. You are always getting things you can't have out of the pantry and sneaking crumbs you find off the floor. You like pretty much everything you try, but really love watermelon, peaches and strawberries. Also, pancakes and smoothies rank pretty high too!