Circus

Macy's class had a field trip to the circus.  I'm still not sure how the circus counts as a field trip, but given the number of school groups that were there I'd assume it somehow ties in. 

The girls had never been to the circus and I hadn't been since I was a child.  I was hoping that there would be some old-school circus feats in the program, and I was more than pleasantly surprised. While there were some new things added in, there were a lot of the things that you think of at the circus, they just took them up a notch, or more like a lot of notches. I would highly recommend checking it out when they are in town.

Kayla's favorite part - the horses.

Enthralled.

These people were nuts!

 And so were these girls.  They were hanging and twirling by their hair!

 

 

It wouldn't be a circus without the lions and tigers,

or the elephants,

or the motorcycle ball.  Only difference in 2013 and when I went as a child, they kept adding cyclists until they were up to 8 people flying around in that thing!

We had such a great day.  We are so thankful for opportunities to enjoy life with our children.

Little Cutie

Brooke and I had a mini photo session the other day.  She was so cute in her little pig-tails, and since my baby is growing up I needed to get a few pictures.

What a Month!

The last blog post left off with Brooke's third birthday at the beginning of the month.  Two days later we started a roller-coaster of a month. I am really hoping February has more pleasant things in store for our family.

I mentioned that we took the girls to the Home Depot building time on Brooke's birthday, but I never did post a picture.  This was Brooke's first time so she now has her very own orange apron.

Two days after Brooke's birthday Macy and I woke up sick. Later that morning Marc and Brooke followed. He went to the doctor and tested positive for the flu, so we made an appointment for Brooke later that day and she too tested positive. The next morning Kayla woke up with a fever, so although we didn't all get tested, we knew we all had it. Thankfully it wasn't as bad as it could have been.  For me it was mostly intense congestion. When I took a tamiflu I felt so much worse, so I opted to fight through it on my own.  After all I did have 4 other people depending on me. Marc was hit the worst, and Brooke was in pretty rough shape for a day.  Other than that we were all mostly just feeling tired and icky. We spent the week being lazy and recovering.  And I won't lie, it was kind of nice to watch movies, not cook, and snuggle with my babies. I am just so thankful that it was mild case of it for the girls.

Since we moved and no longer live on a cul-de-sac we haven't taken the girls out on their bikes in quite a while.  They have been riding them in the basement, but I decided that we needed to get Kayla's training wheels off.  I know we would have done it a long time ago if they rode bikes more often, but I didn't want to wait any longer.  She was a little nervous, but she did great! We just need to build up those leg muscles some so she can get started when the road goes uphill. 

 

While Kayla and Daddy worked on the bike riding skills the girls and I played at the playground. Chester was visiting from kindergarten this week and got a special seat on Macy's bike.

 

The girls had special days at school last week.  Macy had cowgirl day. They dressed up, ate hotdogs for lunch, and did other fun cowgirl types of things.

Kayla had her Ben Franklin presentation.  When Mrs. Foster told the students to pick a famous American to research I knew she would choose Ben Franklin.  She is related to him on her dad's side and she thinks that is so cool. So do I actually. :)

And to finish the month out I had my gall bladder removed. The recovery is going better than I anticipated, but I also tend to prepare for the worst. For me it's better to prepare for the worst and have things be better than to prepare for the best and have things go downhill. I am still taking it super easy and the girls have spent time at their grandparents' homes.  Between that and the meals that my Sunday School class has been providing I am able to take it easy and am recovering well.  The girls picked out some flowers for me (and one of these days I will remember to get the tall vase out for tulips).

Kayla's Report on Ben Franklin

For the grandparents who want to see:

Brooke's 3rd Birthday Party

We had a lovely day celebrating our little girl.  We went to Home Depot for the monthly building project, took her to Brooklyn Joe's for lunch, and made a stop by Brain Freeze for her favorite dessert. After her nap I took her to get her nails painted at the salon for the first time. Then it was time for her party!

 

 We all loved the cake that Mrs. Deidre made!

 

Uncle Chris and Aunt Amanda decided to stay in town an extra day so they could join in the festivities.  Uncle Chris wore those kids out! 

Several months ago Brooke asked if she could have some gum. I told her she could have some when she was three.  You know, the trick of putting it off. Well a couple months after that she asked again, when I once again told her she had to wait until she was three she said, "okay, on January 5 I have gum."  That little stinker is a smart one! We tried to let the issue drop, but she did remember on her birthday.  So we had the talk about chewing it, but that it had to be spit out in the garbage when she was done.  So she chewed it and swallowed it. She enjoyed her gum and we'll try again in a few months - if she asks again.

Happy Birthday little Brooke! We had a great day celebrating with you!

Happy 3rd Birthday, Brooke!

My Little Brooke Nichole, 

Three years ago today I had no idea my life was about to change once again.  You surprised us with an early arrival, and you are still keeping us on our toes! I can vividly remember January 5, 2010, and yet here I sit, three years later, preparing to wish you a happy birthday. Time erases many memories, but the day you joined our family will never be forgotten.

You are such a verbal little girl.  You talk all the time!  I guess you had to pick up on that pretty quickly in order to keep up with your sisters.  And keeping up with your sisters is something you try very hard to do. You don't want to be left out at all! 

You are a very picky eater.  You are starting to do better with eating chicken, but the only vegetable you will eat is carrots.  You would eat pizza, pasta, and fruit at every meal if I let you.  As much as you love your noodles, your favorite thing to eat is candy.  Oh my! I have caught you sneaking candy out of the candy bowl, and sometimes you even wake up asking for candy for breakfast. For now the candy is up in the pantry where you can't reach it.

Here are a few of your favorites:

food: pasta

color: pink

clothing: "boot jeans"

teacher: Mrs. Melanie

books: anything with flaps

song: Where I Belong by Building 429

TV show: Bubble Guppies 

princess: Ariel

movie: Tangled

chapstick

bandaids

playing on our phones

coke

Some of your not so favorites:

being wet (other than bath/pool time)

wearing coats

socks

being dirty 

being told no

Funny words and sayings:

Gu-Guppies - Bubble Guppies

Don't laugh at me!

It's not funny!

Because I want to.
Chick-a-flay
Straw-blah-bees (strawberries)

Brooke, you have added so much to our lives.  You are a sweet and spunky little girl.  You know what you want and when you want it.  I pray that I can help channel that determination into something that glorifies God.  I can only imagine what He can do with someone like you.  You are such an independent little girl, but you still love your Mommy.  You gave me the privilege of rocking you to sleep tonight.  It has been months since I have done that.  I loved studying your profile as you slept and praying over you. You definitely  keep me on my toes, little one, but I wouldn't trade that for a thing.  I am so thankful for what you add to our family of five.

Love, 

Mommy