AMERICAN GIRL!!!

This is my last post for now. I am realizing how busy we have been since Christmas!!! I am hoping things will calm down for a bit! I guess when you have kids things never really calm down. We were invited by a friend to go to American Girl in Chicago with the Parks and Rec. We took a chartered bus up for the day and had a great time! Eden had been very patiently saving her money from Christmas and her report card to spend. She actually had $95 saved so she was able to get another doll (with a little help from mommy). When we left she had planned on getting matching outfits for her and her doll but when she was looking at the "just like me" dolls and saw the one that looked just like her she couldn't resist!! And it really does look like her in the summer when she is tan. We then opted for the matching t-shirts....which are way cheaper than the outfits. Although Faith doesn't play with her dolls anymore (sniff, sniff) she still wanted to go, enjoyed herself and got a few books. The weather was really, really nasty and we had planned on going up in the John Hancock building but the visibility was "zero" so we didn't waste our money and instead did some shopping in the mall. The lunch is always enjoyable and at the tables they have "conversation starters." My favorite part of the trip was asking the girls these questions and listening to their answers like..."What do you want to be when you grow up" and "If you could start a club, what kind would it be?"...etc... Thank you to the Fitzgerald's for inviting us!!

Sawyer and Kyle to to Florida!

Sawyer got to experience a "mancation" in mid-February. He, Kyle and my father-in-law went to Florida for 4 days to visit Kyle's grandparents. They did a lot of fun things like going to dog races, staying in a hotel, swimming and fishing on a boat in the ocean. Although the trip had been planned for a couple of months we didn't tell Sawyer until a week before. Even that was too soon because he had a hard time waiting. They left on a Friday morning and Sawyer even told me that I should have waited to tell him until the Wed. before. They all had a great time!!

Faith is 12!!!

Faith turned 12 on Feb. 27th. I have probably seen the most change in Faith this year. She is really growing up and maturing. She is way more concerned with how she looks and is more responsible. She is now babysitting for us for short amounts of time as well. However...she still loves to hang out with mom and dad and the rest of the family. I hope that never ends. She is still a straight "A" student and loves school. Her social life is to be envied. Faith is a "joiner." She loves being involved in whatever is available to her. Currently she is taking piano (like always), hip-hop dance and sewing (hopefully I will get around to posting some of the cute stuff she has made). Today will be her first day of track. Track is open to everyone and although she might never compete she still wanted to join anyways....to be with her friends. She doesn't particularly enjoy playing clarinet in the band but stays in to socialize. I am pretty sure I was exactly like her in 6th grade although I didn't get straight "A's." Faith also joins "Young Women's" now that she is 12. This is the youth group at our church. She will now go every Wed. night for activities and will join the older kids during church on Sunday's. Young Women's is a great program for girls 12-18. Faith is very excited to be a part of it.

Faith wanted to invite lots of girls to her b-day party so we decided on bowling. You don't have to pay per person and they could be loud and obnoxious. The girls had lots of fun and Faith got a lot of great gifts. She received 6 t-shirts, jewelry and food. She also got gift cards and cash among other things. From us she received a dwarf hamster. This is what she really, really wanted. We had a guinea pig several years ago and I wasn't a fan.... it stunk and did not like to be held at all. We did more research this time and received lots of help and advice at the pet store before deciding on the dwarf. I think we made a good choice this time. We have had her for almost 2 weeks now and she doesn't smell and is VERY friendly (photos coming soon). Faith gets her out every night to run in her ball and in our Zhu Zhu pet house. Faith named her "Baby Gaga." Beckett calls her "GooGoo Gaga." Faith loves animals! Faith's siblings got her a "CTR" ring. "CTR" stands for "Choose the Right." Happy Birthday to Faith! She is becoming a wonderful young lady!! We LOVE YOU!

Sawyer is 10!!!

Sawyer turned 10 on Feb. 27th. It just doesn't even register that Sawyer will be heading into jr. high in a year and a half! Where has the time gone! Sawyer has already started planning his 11th birthday. He does this every year. I guess we will call him a "planner." However, he will change his mind about a million times before the actual day. This year he decided on a Chuck e Cheese party. Watching Beckett in the "Ticket Blaster" a month before was the clincher. In the "Ticket Blaster" one has 30 seconds to get as many tickets as possible. This is why his shirt is tucked in (so he can stuff tickets down it) and why he is wearing the crown (so that tickets will land in it). We had 9 or 10 boys including Sawyer and they all had a lot of fun. They all went through tokens like water but that is to be expected. Sawyer chose a cookie cake this year since he doesn't like frosting. Sawyer received very nice gifts from his friends. From us her received a jersey, Madden '11 for xbox and a lego set from his siblings.

Sawyer is a great kid. Over the last couple of months I have had several people tell me what a nice kid he is. That is great to hear as a parent especially since I mostly see him picking on Eden. Sawyer is a very hard worker in school and really in all he does. He is a "stat machine" when it comes to football and loves to try new things. The kid has a heart of gold. He often tries to come up with ways to cure the world of its problems. We were watching that secret millionaire show last night and Sawyer was very moved by this soup kitchen that gave and delivered food to the needy. For about an hour...or more...after the show ended he talked about how we should buy "Ruby Tuesdays" (that has closed down) and serve food to hungry people. When I make him get rid of some of his old toys he is insistent they go to Good Will and will ask me over and over again if I have taken them there. On the flip side...the kids LOVES money. My parents bought him a lock box for his b-day and he loves to organize and count it. I am hoping he will find a balance with his desire to help people and his love of money as he gets older. Happy Birthday to Sawyer .... WE LOVE YOU!

I'm a Big Boy Now!!

Beckett is potty trained!! He has actually been potty trained for about 6 weeks now and hasn't had an accident in probably 3 weeks. I really despise this chore and I dread for a good year before even starting. However, Beckett did great. He was very easy and I was VERY relaxed about it. He was immediately "night trained." He hasn't had even one nighttime accident. My first two wore pull-ups to bed until they were 4 so it has been really nice. The #2 training took a week or two but as soon as I started offering him candy for every time he pooped on the potty he got it really quickly. I have to admit that I am a little sad that I never have to buy diapers again and that I now have no reason to hit the baby aisle at Walmart.