my 8 year old

What a difference a year makes!  You are 8!! You've really grown and blossomed this year.  You still love to read.  It's your favorite thing to do!  You also love ballet and started it last August.  You plan to continue to do dance as long as you can.  You are writing words and sentences extremely well and enjoy creating stories about fairies and fancy topics.  You currently love playing with your fairies and doll house.  Also, you're a great helper for Colbie and Demsey.  This year we went sledding and you loved it!  You keep asking to go ice skating.  Maybe we can next week for your birthday celebration.  We are having your family over on your birthday for pizza and salads and cake.  It will be a fun day.  We are having a Brave movie theme which is one of your favorite movies.  You lost 4 teeth so far and have a toothless grin.  We love you Bubba Jean, and hope you have a super wonderful 8th birthday! XOXO

sledding time

Can I sled?

Here we gooooo!!!

Weeeeeeeeee!!!

She's pooped!

FUN!

Whoaaaaaaa!

Turn, turn, turn, turn....(she was nervous that they would crash into the bushes). LOL.

    

At home playing outside.

pics

Sweet silly boy. Love him.

still here

We are definitely still here and plugging along! We took a week and a half off over Christmas. Had a couple of colds and a couple of pukes and now here we are!

Averie is currently working on her writing book, science book, brain quest book, and doing several courses online. They really enjoy the online activities & are really learning from them. She's also working on several spelling words each week and using those words to write sentences during her journaling time. She have a great positive attitude 99% of the time and seems to be the most challenged by spelling. But, she asks to learn how to spell new words quite frequently. When we aren't doing school, Averie is playing with her fairies and her dollhouse.

Bay is doing great! He is learning to read and really excelling at it. He's half way through the book but is already capable of ready other stories and sentences in his other books. I think we both laughed out loud when he randomly read something because I don't think we ever had him try before! It was a proud moment. Baylor is also doing a 1st grade readiness book and a writing book. He has been enjoying his tractors and playing his DSi during free time. He also likes playing with Averie and her fairies.

Miss Colbie is still working with dot paints and letters, she's also still watching her learning show most mornings while the big kids do school. She's been playing with her new baby doll and with pup-pup too. We have also been working on writing her name. She loves finding C's.

Well, Mr. D...he started cereal last week and loves it! He eats cereal for lunch and dinner. Next week breakfast too and probably some prunes and avocados. I have a feeling he will bea great eater. He is very close to rolling over but still doesn't try often. He also doesn't get angry. He just tries and then chills! It is pretty funny how laid back he is. He is nursing at 5am (and going back to bed), 8am, 11:30am, 3:30pm, 7:30pm, & 11pm. He naps from about 9:45-11:30, 2-3:30, and usually a cat nap from 6:15-6:45. D is very relaxed and laid back. He loves attention from his sibs and loves being held and carries around just so he can check things out. He is also very ready to sit up. So, we are working on that! Soon he will move into his crib full time.

Well, tomorrow we are venturing to Grandma and Grandpa's house a couple hours away. We are all super excited!!! It's been a few months since we've seen them! We are also bringing our school books to show Grandma Judy what we learn!

Happy half birthday to my ham tomorrow too! I will leave you with some pics!

merry Christmas

What a beautiful, wonderful day! We just love Christmas so much. Even though half of the kids were sick, it was still a fabulous holiday.

Christmas Eve was filled with prepping and sickness. Baylor and Colbie perked up a bit, but were still borderline sick. After daddy got home from work, we packed up and headed to Grandma and Grandpa's for Christmas Eve dinner... yummy soup (bean), wraps, veggies, spinach dip, cheese & crackers, Hawaiian bread, cookies, bon bons, pretzel bites, so much deliciousness.

We ate like champs, then loaded up for church. It was a nice low-key, simple service. Not very crowded either. Once we returned to open gifts, the craziness began! Heehee! The kids loved everything about opening presents. Averie was elated to open the Brave movie and Merida doll... Baylor loved his John Deere tractor set. Colbie fell asleep half way through gifts, but she loved her fairies set and Minnie Mouse toy. D loved watching and taking it all in. He loved his snail mirror toy and Elmo book. After all the craziness, we packed up and headed home. That took a while. We were home by 10:45pm, just in time for Bay to get sick in the car. :o( Off to bed everyone went...

The next morning the kids slept in til about 8:15am. It was nice not having anywhere to be right away. They opened stocking stuff first - water bottles, toothbrushes, flossers, candy, markers, tape, high heels (Colbie), chewy toys (Demsey), and a few other items I'm forgetting. The favorite gifts were probably from Santa. Aves and Bay each got a DSi and case and two games! So super exciting!! Colbie got Averie's Leappad and two new games for it. Demsey got two ducky-banks, his name letters, a train set, and a few other cute things.

Even with all the sicknesses, we had a wonderful Christmas! GG's was next- for food and a few gifts. Bay and daddy stayed home. Thankfully he was feeling better by then. Appetites finally have returned almost a full week later. And it is 2013! Wow! Hoping for a very blessed and magical year!!

4 month chair pics

Averie - 4 months

Baylor - 4 months

Colbie - 4 months

Demsey - 4 months

Sweet boy!

Chunky boy checking out his feet.

my baby boy

My Christmas Shopping buddy. <3 We have been super busy - Christmas shopping, having Thanksgiving dinner here, decorating for Christmas, we had a sleepover at a friends house, Demsey had his cardiologist appointment and well check.

His heart looks good, no new issues! He goes back in March. At 4 months he weighed in at 14lb. 8oz. (40th percentile) and 24.5" (45th percentile). My perfect sweet boy.

all things halloween

Halloween dinner was a wonderful success! It had Averie pretty creeped out. She wouldn't even drink witches brew!!

Snake bite pizza...
Orange fingers with blue slime...
Cheesy bones...
Witches brew...
Eyeballs...
Worms and mud...

It was delish! Can't wait for next year!

Friend sleepover-surprise-movie-night was last night. Delaney and Jett stayed over. Today we plan to make fudge, Halloween themed fudge. We will see if it turns out! Happy Friday!!

halloween dinner

We are starting a new FUN tradition!!

Creepy Halloween Dinner-
Snake Bite pizza
Cheesy Bones with Mummy Sauce
Bloodshot Eyeballs
Orange Fingers with Slime
Witches Brew
Mud and Worms for dessert

Muahahahahahaha!!!!! <------ evil Mama laugh!!!!

Pics of dinner will be posted tomorrow.
Here are a few pics of our fun from this morning and yesterday. No specific order... Our super cute pumpkin family, Colbie's melted crayon leaf, Bugga boy, snake bite pizza & Baylor's super tall tower.

fall fun this week

Monday- Here is what we are doing today and this week, which highlights some of the many reasons we love homeschooling- today we played catch-up from the weekend. Cleaned and organized the kids rooms (holy disaster!). They are better but not great, yet. Had homemade pumpkin seeds for a snack. Folded and put away lots of laundry. Watched a Dora show. And it's only 11:30! Next the big kids are going to organize and make lunch with each food group. After lunch we are going to make homemade applesauce. The applesauce turned out amazing! The kids did great helping me cut the apples. Their food group lunch turned out so good too- pb and banana sandwiches. Carrots. Yogurt and milk. Yummy!

Tuesday- We colored fall pictures and wrote a little story about them. The kids have been playing playmobil and we are about to do a fall leaf craft with crayon shavings and wax paper...

Later this week... Halloween fudge. Creepy Halloween lunch. Harvest wreath. Grandma day. Friend sleepover/day. More pics to come!