Stuff

I have so many things I want to blog about I am not sure I will ever catch up but here is an attempt....in no particular order.

Faith received a dwarf hamster for her b-day and named her "Baby Gaga." She has been an excellent, very low maintenance pet! She has never bitten and even lets Beckett hold her. Faith loves to play with her and we have a ball that is very fun to watch her run around in.

G-pa Gary also recently bought the girls this purple scooter. The three oldest can ride it really well and love it. I can even ride it and am thinking I need a bigger version. Beckett LOVES to ride on it with Faith and thinks he is big stuff!

Kyle is 39!!

This means I have less than a year to decide what to do for his 40th!! For his b-day we had steaks on the grill with sweet potato casserole (his favorite). Faith made him brownies. My parents were over that day so they joined us! We will be celebrating again on Easter with both sets of parents. Kyle always goes overboard on my b-day and other holidays and he always gets the shaft. That just proves how much better he is than I am and I love him for it. He really, truly is the best daddy and husband ever! Happy Birthday, Kyle! We love you!!!

The only two pictures I took in Chicago!

Chicago

Two weeks ago I went to Chicago for TWO WHOLE NIGHTS with my very good friends, Kristen and Jenny. We took the train on Friday morning and came back Sunday morning. We stayed in a very, very nice hotel down town that was funded by Kristen's, husband's, hotel points. Our friend, Kira (who now lives in Wisconsin) met us. We had a great time and all we did was shop and eat...and talk...and laugh. We ate at "The Melting Pot" which was delish! I was also bound and determined to buy some "Garrett's Popcorn" while there. This popcorn is some of "Oprah's" favorites. We waited in line for an hour at the end of the night and did manage to get some cheese popcorn cause they didn't have any caramel left. I am so mad that I didn't take a picture of us standing outside in the line waiting. I have been friends with these girls for around 10 years (since our oldest were toddlers). Love them all!

Catch Up!

Fun at an Extreme game. This is indoor arena football. Faith's choir ensemble sang "The Star Spangled Banner." Beckett did great...this was one of those moments when we realized we can start taking him more places!!
Faith at her band concert. Daddy and Eden went but mommy was home with sick boys! Faith doesn't "love" band so we will see if she decides to continue in 7th grade.

Sawyer and Grayson at their Chess Banquet! Sawyer loves chess and is now with a private teacher year around. He improved a lot this year and we are looking forward to next season!

My little camera man "recording" Eden at the talent show...see below :)

Eden, Nicole and Delaney performed at the school talent show. They tried out and made it! They hula hooped and jump roped to "You Spin Me Right Round" by the Chipmunks. It was all their own idea although the moms help "refine" their routine for the show. They did great!

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!!