Most things are better PINK!

Truth be told, I'm not a very big pancake fan. It's usually quite easy to turn down most pancakes, but I have to admit, these looked pretty good. It must have been the pink color. I love pink. Tyler is pretty much always the one to make pancakes for the kids because I don't care for them much. I was feeling the Valentine love in the air and I decided to wake up a little earlier and surprise the kids with some pink heart pancakes before school on Friday.

Miss P just couldn't wait and had hers minus the syrup.

This is what really drew me in, those sprinkles made them so pretty!
Jacob was very happy about the heartcakes.

I guess Micah was too.

This is Benny awhile later, he decided that a little extra sleep was better than heartcakes.

Maybe next month I can do green clovercakes for our annual green St. Patrick's Day breakfast!

Gopspel Artwork with a twist, Jacob's twist

The kids always hand me a multitude of papers after church every Sunday, most of which is some sort of artwork. Well, I was cleaning out my bag and gathering the stuff up that was going to be trashed when I found this little beauty below. It was about to go to the trash when something made me take a second look. Upon closer inspection I could see the very interesting faces Jacob had drawn on the children. I wonder what The Friend would think of this piece? I am glad that Jesus's face was already there, it would be too disturbing for me to see how he might have made his face! Check out the little cyclops girl at the bottom. Interesting huh?

Thanks Aunt Jan!

Well, I'm still here and life is still happening, I am just not doing very good getting it all recorded! I am finding it harder and harder to get on the computer.
Anyway, I have been doing a Healthy Living Challenge with some other women at church and working really, REALLY hard on losing weight. It IS coming off, but very, very slowly. I have had a problem with my seratonin levels (I don't produce enough) for about the last year or so, which means I have episodes of severe vertigo from time to time, sometimes a few times a week, sometimes none for a few weeks. Anyway, I just found out a few days ago that this could also be affecting my weight loss, or lack of! I will not give up though, I just wish my body would work right.

So, Peyton had her 2nd birthday last month and Aunt Jan sent her the cutes sweater and hat set. Here are some pictures of her in it. She also got a package of 3 little puppies. That was her favorite, she plays with them in the doll house and the Barbie house.

She does her own make up now too.

She loves Nana Paula.

Thank you Aunt Jan, we love you and miss you and hope to see you soon. I hope you aren't feeling too down with the weather in Connecticut!

She's 2!

It was just 2 years ago today that I had just had my 4th C-section and my very first girl. She has been a delight to us all every day since that day 2 years ago. She is every bit girl, well, mostly! She is into dolls of all kinds, babies, clothes, pony tails, headbands, makeup and polish. She talks very well and all the time. Not an hour goes by that I don't hear her sweet voice singing. I could not wait to have a girl and looked so much forward to all of the girlie things I would finally be able to do and yet, nothing could have prepared me for the amount of love and wonder and awe I feel for this girl.

Above and below are a few of the many pictures I took of her checking out her new hairstyle, a headband.

I suppose that I forgot to mention that she likes a little dress up sometimes too!

However, I think she'll have no problems being a bit of a tomboy. She doesn't mind getting dirty and she can definately hold her own with anyone that may pick on her. Just this morning, much to my chagrin, she brought in super heroes (Batman and Superman) for us to play together. I don't like playing them with the boys, and guess what? I don't playing them with her either! This girl can eat too. It's a good thing that she has Daddy's metabolism, she often eats the boys under the table.

She's a busy girl and really enjoys being outside. Her 2 favorite things to do outside are swinging and jumping on the tramp. If you want to get the cutest and most sincere belly laught from her jump with her on the tramp, she likes it best when you jump really high and hold her.

We had a small party for her last Friday and had some family over to celebrate. I made her 2 Barbie cakes which she loved and I'll have to post pictures of those soon.

Peyton, we all love you so much and are incredibly happy that you are a part of our family. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

It finally hatched!

At the end of November I was putting up the plastic containers that house our Christmas decor and under one of them, by the sliding glass door in our carpet I found a somewhat hard, brown, squirming thing. I really had no idea what it was. Well, I had some ideas, but I didn't know. It could have been some kind of larve or worm, but I was hoping it was a moth cocoon. We put it in a mason jar (with some foil that I poked holes in with a fork on top) in the kitchen. Over a month went by with my checking it out every day, no progress. Finally, one morning I noticed a brownish liquid on the paper towel in the bottom of the jar. My first thought was, "Oh great, someone smashed our whatever it is." I looked more closely at it and it was not smashed but it looked empty and there was nothing else in the jar, then I looked on the foil and hanging there was a MOTH!

I know you can't really see it here, but it's there.

The boys were pretty excited that something finally happened and we let it go.

Just for the record

We'll start with Christmas Eve. The traditional reading of Luke 2 done by my mother in law
While the family plays the parts...Bryan and Helga as Mary and Joseph and Makyla as baby Jesus (each year this part is typically played by the most recent family to have a new baby)

Tyler, No room at the inn.

Micah, Sore afraid.

Wise men and their gifts

All the cousins that were there this year, my kids, Essien and Makyla.

I made all my nephews, my boys, and Ty matching jammie pants. When I bought the kids pattern I laughed that it had a dog shirt with it, and then I ended up making Diego one with the scraps. I thought the boys would like him matching, they did. Santa even brought him a treat in his stocking.

She woke up just in time, before the opening began.

My sister and Nephew spent the night with us so were there Christmas morning.

Jacob got just what he asked for from Santa, a MAN'S wallet.

Santa got Ben a Wally, remote control, like he wanted last year ($80), and was still very happy to get it this year ($35)!

Peyton had fun playing with some of the tools my mom got Ben, Santa brought her a pack in play for her dolls, but her favorite gift was the buggy my mom got her.

Peyton also got many Barbies, Barbie clothes, baby dolls and baby clothes that she loves. She is almost ready for bed here as soon as she reads her baby a story!

Christmas was wonderful this year and we were truely blessed and are really looking forward to another wonderful year!

New Year, New Family Picture

Thanks be to my sweet Sister-in-law Helga. We have a family picture. I have put this off for so long, waiting until I was skinny again. Well, I'm not giving up, I'll just have her take our pictures again when I am thinner! This is my favorite so far of our whole family, I will be posting more though! Keep a look out.

This one was too cute, I think this was probably the last picture Helga took. Peyton was done. When Helga said all done Peyton perked right up and repeated, "All done?!"