Our new lawn service......

Isn't our new lawn boy a cutie?!! He's hard working and doesn't even complain (despite the warm weather and our fairly large yard). But don't worry, we pay him well. :)

Birthday Celebration

We celebrated Mia's birthday last weekend. Instead of having a party, she is going to have a *pampering* day at Sweet and Sassy with her best friend. (Their birthdays are a month apart so they are going to celebrate together. We'll be doing that the beginning of May.) So, we had a little party with just us. Mia had a great time!

Happy Birthday, Mia!!

I can't believe my little girl is 5 years old today!! Five seems so big to me and I have been slightly in denial about today. They really do grow up so fast. She is so much fun and our family just wouldn't be the same without her. Yes, we do get our fair share of drama (okay...maybe a little more than our fair share!!), but I wouldn't change a thing. She has such a sweet personality and always knows how to make us smile. No matter how old she gets, she'll always be our little girl!!

Good morning, birthday girl!! We woke Mia up this morning by pouncing on her bed and singing happy birthday! (Yep, she slept in a dance leotard last night!!)

We had her favorite donuts for breakfast.....with sprinkles!!!

And here she is hammin' it up for the camera.

Happy birthday, Mia! We love you!!

Another milestone....

sweet potatoes - yummy!!

carrots - not too bad

peas - I don't think so!!

We just started fruits but he isn't very interested right now. He is very congested and wheezy (we're back on breathing treatments again) and doesn't want much to do with baby food. Instead, he just wants to nurse.....constantly!!!

Braces!!

Last month, Colton had 4 baby teeth pulled....and on April 1st, he got braces!!!! He only has them across the front, on the top. He was such a trooper through it all (he was actually really excited to get braces) and has quickly learned what foods you can and can't eat with braces. Right now he has lime green bands on them. They told him he could switch colors every time he came in and he is already planning which color will be next.

Girly Room!!

After nearly 5 years, I finally have my girly room!! I have always wanted Mia to have a girly room, but since we used the same gender neutral crib bedding for all the kids, the colors were always red and blue. And until we move in to a bigger house, she is sharing a room with Caden. Well, a good friend of ours gave Mia a whole bedroom set and while we were getting ready to set up all the new furniture, I decided to paint her room!! I painted the chair rail a pretty sage green and below it is pink. Mia LOVES it!!!! We found her a pretty quilt and got Caden a light blue and sage green quilt to coordinate. Luckily, Caden is young and doesn't really care what color the walls are!! The room really looks great!! Kyle just hung up some curtains, so I'll have to take more pictures and post them.

Look who's sitting up!!

Mason reached another milestone while we were in Utah. He started sitting up!!! Kyle was sad that he missed it and couldn't believe that I didn't call him the very second that he started sitting up to tell him!!

Too darn cute!!!!

High School Musical

The day after we got back from Utah, I took Mia and Colton to see High School Musical on ice. We went with some good friends and had a great time. The kids had so much fun dancing and singing along to the songs. It was very impressive to watch the performers dance, skate, play basketball and lip sync all at the same time!!

Utah - part 3!!

Okay, this will be my last Utah post!! I just couldn't resist adding some more pictures!!

Mason got lots of love from Uncle Mark!

Here are the three babies!! Yep, mine is the huge one on the end - the naked one. We refer to them in this picture as *small, medium and large*!! They are all so adorable, though!!

Mia loves her new cousin Jack!

I have such awesome nieces and nephews!! Here I am with Mia and Max.

Jack and Mason smiling for the camera.

Cousins - Mia, Isabelle, Kaitlyn, Max and Alex

Utah....part 2

Here are some more pictures from Utah! We took these after the blessing of my new nephew, Jack.

My brother, Mark, and his wife, Janette, and their beautiful family. Kids - Max, Kaitlyn, Isabelle, and Courtney. They are expecting baby #5 - due the end of September!!

My cousin, Nic and his wife Jessica. Cute kiddos - Wesley and their new baby girl, Kamryn.

My big brother, Mike, and his wife, Cristy, and their 3 handsome boys - Max, Alex, and Jack.

My Aunt Teresa and Uncle Tom and 2 of their boys - Micah and Shane. What a good looking bunch!!
And here is my family!! I wish we could have had everyone there....we are missing my little brother, Robbie, and his 3 kids, as well as my dad. And, of course, we are missing my hubby and our 2 other rascals!!

I'm back from Utah....

...and trying to catch up on life!! (Okay, I confess - I have been back for over 2 weeks now but am having a hard time getting back to reality!!) We had a fabulous trip! We got to stay an extra 2 1/2 days because our original flight home was cancelled. We had so much fun and I just have to say - I have an amazing family! They really are the best! Mia had so much fun playing with her cousins and Mason got more attention than he knew what to do with! We divided up our time so that we could stay a few nights at each of my brothers homes and also a few nights at my Aunt and Uncle's house. Regardless of where we were staying, we had huge family get togethers almost every night! I loved having time to spend talking, laughing, and reminiscing with my brothers. I have really missed them. They have amazing families and it was great to spend time getting to know my nieces and nephews better. I even got to spend a day with just my two sister-in-laws! We had lunch and then went shopping! My brothers have incredible wives. My brother, Mike, got a big kick out of all of us nursing moms!! Here is a quote from his blog. "My sister and 2 of her kids are out visiting from Austin. Its been a blast so far and the kids have loved playing with their cousins. They are all so cute together but , with Cristy, my sister, and Jess all lactating, its been a plain old dairy farm around the house. We all moo as we walk by. Needless to say, we all get punched too." Yep, he's a pretty funny guy!! Of course, those were some of the best times....just sitting around, feeding our babies and talking and laughing. It was great to bond with some of the amazing women in my family!! And as always, we loved the time we spent at my Aunt and Uncle's house. They are like grandparents to my kids and we love that! I missed Kyle and my kiddos back home, but really enjoyed spending so much time with my family in Utah. Here are some pictures from the trip. I took over 200....but I promise not to post them all!

We had a great time at the Mayan Restaurant. Well....the service wasn't that good and only some of us got our food, but the kids had a blast and we all enjoyed the company!

Mia had so much fun with her cousins, Kaitlyn and Courtney. They were so cute together. Kaitlyn loved putting make-up on Mia and getting all decked out in dress-up clothes. They put on shows for us and ran around with little head sets on. They are such sweet girls!

Mia and Max were two peas in a pod! They played so well together and had so much fun.

I wish I had gotten more pictures of this. We had so much fun playing (or watching people play) Rockband!! And boy can my brothers rock out!!! That's Mike on the drums and Mark is to his right. My cousin, Micah, was on the microphone and had us all laughing so hard when he belted out Sabotage. It was great! Needless to say, I am not quite coordinated on the drums, but can hold my own on the guitar!!

Some random pictures...

Just some cute pictures of Mason!! I can't believe how big he is getting!!

Here is the cake that Kyle and Colton made for the cubscout Rodeo themed Blue and Gold. They had so much fun decorating it! This was the second cake that was baked because Caden climbed up and got ahold of the first one.....and ate from Corpus Christi to Austin!!

Here are a few pictures of Mia after her soccer game. She didn't want to take her uniform or her cleats off. She even slept in her jersey that night!!

UTAH - here I come!!!

Three weeks ago I told my wonderful hubby that I was feeling a little homesick and was really missing my brothers. I told him I wanted to go visit them in Utah. He didn't even hesitate. He said "Okay. When do you want to go?" He was so supportive and offered to take some time off work so he could stay home with the kids. I am taking the baby (of course) and also decided to take Mia with me. And we are leaving tomorrow!!!!!! I am so excited!! I have a new nephew who will be getting blessed while I am there. My cousin and his wife also just had a baby girl. I can't wait to see everyone. Mia is so excited, too. It has been a while since she has seen her cousins. Kyle will be staying home with Colton and Caden. As Colton says, they will be having a "Man Week". Kyle is planning some fun things for the boys. We will be gone for 8 days!! I will be taking lots of pictures and will post a bunch when I get back!!

Soccer games

Colton and Mia had soccer games on Saturday. Their game times overlapped, so Kyle and I had to split up. He and Caden watched Colton's game and Mason and I watched Mia's. Both teams did great! Mia actually kicked the ball! In fact, she made two goals and was so excited! After we got home, she didn't want to change. She wore her soccer uniform - cleats and all - all day long!!

Our Soccer Girl

Here is Miss Mia before her first soccer practice. Notice all the pink!! She was so excited to play, but when we got to the practice she buried her head in my leg and started to cry. She did not want to get out there with the rest of her team and practice. She told me she didn't want to play soccer anymore! So, I told her that if she got out there and tried her best, we would get ice cream afterwards. Well, that did the trick!! She practiced with her team and LOVED it!!! Now she can't wait for soccer practice!!

Ugh....TAKS test

Well, I just got back from taking Colton to school and I hated dropping him off. Today is the much anticipated TAKS test. For the last few months, it seems like all they have done is prepare for the test. Colton has been nervous about this all week and I feel so bad for him. He came home yesterday telling me all the *rules* - they have to sit at their desk all day (with the exception of lunch), absolutely no talking (except at lunch), they will be sent to the principals office if they are talking during the test, etc. And the teachers made it very clear that if you didn't pass the test at all (of course you do get 3 chances at it), you would have to repeat 3rd grade. Ugh!! Not only is it going to be a long day for these kids, but it also seems sad to put that much pressure on them!! I gave Colton a pep talk this morning and made sure that he understood that it is only a test and as long as he tries his best, it doesn't matter to me how he does. I can't wait for today to be over!!

I'm back....again!!

Wow! I can't believe it has been over a year since I have posted on my blog! Life has been so busy, but I finally decided that since I can't seem to keep up with scrapbooking and babybooks, I should try to restart my blog to help me with my journaling. So, here I go!!

Instead of trying to fill you in on everything that has gone on since my last post, I will just give you an update on each of us.

Colton is 9 years old. Gosh, am I really old enough to have a 9 year old!! He is a 3rd grader and is in his first year of public school. Our decision to put homeschooling on the back burner (hopefully only temporarily) was one of the hardest decisions for me. (Thanks to all my friends who listened to me stress and cry - almost daily - over it!). He is doing well in school and seems to enjoy it. I miss him so much every day and can't wait until school is out for the summer! After taking a year off, Colton just started another season of soccer. Between soccer and cub scouts, he stays really busy (and so do I!!). He's a great kid!

Mia will be 5 years old next month. She is our little princess - the only girl in a house full of boys (except me, of course). She just started her first season of soccer and is really having a great time. She was so excited when we signed her up. When we went to get her soccer shoes, she just had to have the pink Nike cleats, pink soccer ball and pink water bottle. And, of course, daddy couldn't resist! Her first game was last weekend and we had so much fun watching her pigtails bounce up and down as she ran with the pack of 4 year olds - even if she never did touch the ball!

Caden is 2 1/2 years old and is definitely right in the middle of those terrible two's. He is one of the busiest little toddlers I have ever seen. He is on the go nonstop from the time he wakes up until the time he goes to bed. He's our little *Taz* and goes from one thing to the next....leaving a trail of destruction behind him!! Of course, daddy's response is always "Awwww...but he's so cute!!" And I can't really argue with that! He is such a boy (rough and tough), but can also be found playing with Mia - dressed up as little mermaid. He is a sweetie and life just wouldn't be the same without him.

Mason is 5 months old. Our biggest event of the year was the birth of our sweet baby boy. He had a rough start - spending his first 8 days in the NICU - but is doing great. He really is a good baby. He loves to smile (especially at his siblings) and giggle. It makes me sad to think about just how fast he is growing up and we are trying to enjoy every minute of it!!

Kyle and I celebrated our 10 year anniversary last June. I can't believe we are going on 11 years!! The kids keep us busy, but we love it. Some days I still can't believe we have 4 kids.....but I wouldn't change it for the world!! Life is good - busy and crazy - but good!