Happy 5th Birthday Declan!!

My dear Son - 

Today you are 5 years old.  My little BIG boy now, that's for sure.  I have so many emotions about this age.  Not specifically about today, but just this season of life.  You're not a baby anymore.  And you are soaking in everything around you, and it is influencing your demeanor and the way you deal with things.  This is both exciting and a little scary for me.  There are times when I see you do something and I can remember exactly when you saw me or Daddy do the same thing.  I am criticizing myself more these days than I ever have before and it's because I want so much for you and I want you to be perfect :)  

Well, I'm smart enough to know that's impossible and I will, and YOU will, make mistakes.  But I am confident that your WHOLE family will do our very best to mold you into a fine young man.  You have some good family, Son.  

You are a very sweet, compassionate, and emotional child.  You feel your emotions, whether they are happy or sad, and I really am holding on to these moments because I know they are fleeting.  You love your friends and family, and want nothing more than to be with them playing, laughing, and pretending.  You protect your little sister against things that may hurt her (that's a nice way of saying you like to tell her what she can't do) but you also praise her when she does something new.  I'm so happy she has you as a big brother, and she will be too, one day.   

You are so smart.  So inquisitive.  And as frustrating as it is at times, this is part of your learning about the world, and I will try to answer intelligently (even though it's sometimes impossible!).   You say things sometimes that blow me away and I just have to marvel that you can retain so much information in such a little body ;)

I love you so much and I am so proud of you!!!  Happy Birthday, Dex! 

5 years; 4 years; 3 years

Dex's 5th Birthday Party

Dex had his 5th Birthday Party at Jump For Fun! again this year.  I didn't mind... I enjoyed going down the slides almost as much as the kids did!  Thankfully, I could blame my playing on Anna this year  :) 

Blurry, but as you can see, she loved the slides.  We went over and over.  And over.  And over!  If she could have crawled up the ladder by herself, she would have.  Instead poor thing had to beg us to take her.  It didn't take much convincing.

The group!

We accidentally got this picture and I just love it!  I think it's pretty cool.

My 'Pinterest Win' moment:

Brooks and Gentry came over the play after the party.  I had to get a picture of them together.  Anna was asleep :(  

Sweet cousins!

Just Annabel

We stopped at a field on the way home from school one day so I could catch some of the afternoon sun.   I don't think I ever post of JUST Anna, so here she is :)  Sweet thing is almost 17 months!

That lip...

Christmas Crafting

I went to the craft store the other day, and I *may* have gone a little crazy buying Christmas crafts... But it's been fun painting and decorating!

Even Anna got in on the action for a few minutes.

I HAD to buy this Christmas tree "crystal-growing" thingie!  I used to love these when I was younger!  I think I probably got a bigger kick out of watching it grow than Dex did.  It's the little things that bring me the greatest pleasure...

And I bought a bunch of knick-knacks for 1/2 price!  You know, those ones that they mark up and then mark down for suckers like me?  Yeah, those.

Icemageddon 2013

So, we've been having "Icemageddon" over here.  Not my word, I saw it on Facebook... seems like a tad much, but I just go with the flow :)

It started on Thursday night, and we've been home-bound since Friday.  Schools were closed, work was closed, it was NASTY outside.  It looked like snow, but it was ice.  And it was un-drivable.  The temperature finally got above freezing today, and we could be outside relatively comfortably without 7 layers of clothes on, so we ventured outside.  Honestly, it was the first time the kids could even walk on it because it was a sheet of glass before today.  Today, it was getting slushy, so Dex did okay.  Anna just doesn't quite weigh enough yet, but at least when she fell, she had cushion under her instead of hard ice!

Dex was digging out his trucks that got snowed in!

Um, yeah.  I don't have any snowy weather clothes for Anna.  She's in Christmas pajamas, a pink hoodie, and Dex's old toboggan.  Oh, and socks and hole-y shoes.  She also didn't have gloves so I ended up putting socks over her hands!  Haha!  What a sight.

Decorating The Christmas Tree

I couldn't wait to get our tree up and start decorating, so we did it the first day we were home after the Thanksgiving holidays.  It seems to signify the start of the Christmas season to me, and I just love it.  I love seeing the Christmas lights up and down our street, they make me happy.  And the kids love it, so that's fun too  :) 

Checking to make sure all the lights work.

GUILTY.

Anna can't keep her face clean.  I guess I could help her out with that, but then I'd just have to do it again 10 minutes later  :)

There's that shirt again!  I promise I wash it every once in a while.

Wanna put that cookie down for one picture, Anna?!

A little bottom heavy again this year...

Anna loves her some shoes.  She doesn't care who's shoes they are, she wants them on.  Now.  And then she wants different ones on almost immediately.

My little baby is growing up, drinking out of a real cup.

Then the karaoke party started :)