Easter!

Happy Easter!! We had a beautiful sunny Easter this year. Our church is late in the afternoon so I distracted the kids while the Easter bunny hid the eggs and baskets. He was a little too good for the kids this year, but all is all, everything was found!

Ethan is our finder in the house. 

 Kaylin was pretty stumped. I love her little face...

Mika was so excited!

Our little fam before we left for church. I was so excited I got all the girls in exact matching dresses! I've never been able to do that before! 

My sweet crazies. Oh how I love them. 

 Ashlynn is growing up too fast, it's killing me!! She loves putting everything in her mouth, even these round spikey balls that fall from the pines here. She's so funny!

 My gorgeous Kaylin and I. She makes special days even more special by helping out mom and keeping peace in the home. How I cherish her.

Big 10 month old

My little rascal is already 10 months old! Crazy how time is flying by. 

She's crawling, cruising, standing, waving, blowing kisses...it's all too cute.

 She's working on the blowing kisses. She puts her hand up, but doesn't blow... It's still cute.

This is her laughing face...

 Ethan let Ashlynn play with his Monster Trucks...

 ...she was SO happy!

He loves carrying her around on his shoulders too. We were nervous but it turns out she totally loves it. The girls dressed her up with a crown and wand so it just needed a picture...(Mika was spraying herself with a spray bottle...)

 She's not as camera savvy as Mika was as a baby. She'd much rather be held and hugged instead of be in front of the camera :)

Travis and Mika!

Here is the quote translated: "Fathers, you are the primary model of manhood for your sons. You are their most meaningful mentor, and believe it or not, you are their hero in countless ways. Your words and your example are a great influence on them." -Elder M. Russell Ballard October 2009 Conference

My sister-in-law Stacey found this on the Italian LDS facebook page! Remember when the church came to take pictures of us for 4 hrs?!
I was excited to see this! They are famous in Italy! :)

Ethan's 7th Birthday

 Ethan's birthday was on Thusday this year so we kept everything nice and simple. Travis and I met him at school for lunch and brought his class doughnuts.

His best bud Logan rode home on the bus with him...

They watched a 3D movie...

I tackled making the cake...he was happy with it. :) I just did 2 layers and frosted the heck out of it, making a chocolate teddy grahams smashed jump for a grave digger Lego truck. Don't have a strait-on pic, but you get the idea. Big number 7!!!

 Ashlynn enjoyed the cake too!

 Presents!! Some aunties and uncles came to join the fun. (Thanks G, Yo, Brando and Stace and Dev n' Heidi!) We got him his own remote so he doesn't have to wait for dad. He LOVES it....

And I got him a big husky that matches his little one.

The next day Angie, Lily and Henry came to visit. Lily got to meet Ethan and Kaylin for lunch at their Elementary School. Lily even got to stay and watch a Dr Seuss movie in bubby's class. Later we went on a golf cart ride and to the park.

The Hayes' got Ethan an exhaust for his bike. He LOVES it. He rode his bike while we went on the golf cart. 

Thanks everyone for helping making Ethan's day special!!! Happy Birthday bubs! I was very sentimental for some reason this year. We yelled and cheered at 3:25 when he came into the world 7 years ago, premature and sick. What an emotional trial for us, and now when I look at him, overwhelmed with gratitude for my healthy, strong boy, I can't ignore that spot in my heart where he nuzzled his cute little self into.

Our awesome friend Mandy and Chad took us to Charleston for a long weekend. It was perfect!! We left the kids with family and stayed in Mandy's parents' condo a short drive from the city. We had a bit of rain, but that didn't stop us. We still had such a great time. 

The boys fished one afternoon at Shem Creek. Travis caught a crab and Chad caught a flounder but it let go at the last minute...

My cute friend is 30 weeks pregnant...

I loved all the shrimp boats. Cool names and cool nets. 

And the pineapple fountain is of course beautiful....

Some of my favorite places...

I loved all the cobblestone alley ways, and the lamps, everything was so adorable.

 This is a brewery we ate at, played darts and started a Ghost Tour. It actually was right on the bay and owned by a cotton distributor. The story was, his parents died and left him a great inheritance. He put all the cotton he had been storing up on a ship that actually caught fire. He saw the smoke and fire burning in the harbor from the top floor window where his desk was and was so depressed he hung himself from the rafters in the middle of the room....

This is the Waterfront Park. The trees were amazing!  

The City Market. It actually was where they sold slaves. But now it reminded me of Pike's Place Market in Seattle. Restaurants surround it.

I loved all the colors of the houses, the sporadic palm trees and the feeling you get walking the streets.

 At the Waterfront park they had these swings. It was nice to take a break and just watch the Harbor.

This place was SO good. Travis swears he hasn't eaten better wings!

Love is in the air!!

Happy Valentines Day! We didn't do anything fancy this year, but I wanted to make sure everyone "felt" love. I decorated the play room door with reasons why I love my kids. They had fun finding which ones were for them.

 I got to spend the evening with the kids while Travis was at church for scouts. We had fun opening gifts and reading valentines. I got to capture some love with each of my little loves.

I love my little Ashlynn. She's glued to my hip and she loves it there. I'm so grateful she says "ma ma ma ma" all day long instead of Dad or I'd be a little disappointed. She's so fun to watch grow, she's similar to the other kids in so many ways, but also her own little self. Not a cuddle bug so I cherish the quick hugs and the bedtime routine.

 How can I love this boy so much?! He makes me laugh harder than anything! I love his cuddles and hugs, his laugh and his sense of humor. He is such a happy, excited, fun-loving boy. He loves to play and play with me. When he is on helper mode, he is the best helper I could ask for, so fast, efficient and knows where everything is! His love language is Gift and Time.

Oh my sweet Kaylin! She knows the way to her mama's heart. I love her kisses, reading together, doing art projects together. I love that when I'm stressed, she knows exactly what to do to help lighten my load. She is SO helpful and never complains. She is beautiful inside and out!!! Her love language is Words of Affirmation and Physical Touch.

 Mika my little sharer. With everything! Even her little lollipop. She'll share anything with Ethan (and do anything for him too). Anything she gets from school she will divide for us. Or like her Valentines today she gave some to her non-school friend at playgroup. I love her bright blonde hair and her beautiful blue eyes. I love her funny stories and cuddling with her watching movies. I love how she doesn't listen and then exclaims "I listen to my family" so matter-of-factly.

I'm Ethan's room mom at his school. I brought Ashlynn with me this time. She had a lot of fun with the other kids, like with this cute boy, she kept attacking his Vday box taking the eyes off and eating them :)

 She kept yelling (this is non crying, but a yell none the less) so Ethan's teacher took a turn with her. (she has two grand daughters)

Ethan happy with his Valentines!

Cute kiddos from his class! (I go in on Wednesdays so I know them all pretty well)

Cuddling up to one of Ethan's classmates. So cute.

 Trying to figure out what's going on...

So Travis and I get to go to Charleston with our friends the Ohmans for a long weekend. We are SO excited!  Counting that for our date night and fun Vday plans:) Will post pics next week! 

Teeth!

My happy baby took an unhappy few weeks to get new teeth! They are soooo slow growing in, but they have finally cut through her gums, her two bottom little teeth. I'm going to love those full on smiles with a mouth full of teeth :) 

Oh I can't imagine our little family with out Ashlynn. She teaches all of us service, patience and happiness. She is a great night sleeper, but the poor thing can't quite get the best of naps during the day time. I always have helpers to play with her and make sure she drinks all of her bottle, so when it's just her and me, I think she's a little bored. :) Love this smiley girl.

Mika's fun days

Mika's preschool class went to the Aquarium for a field trip! What a lucky girl! She LOVED it and talked about it all night. Her favorite was the Dolphin Show. They did a special show for them.

 Her preschool is a local highschool's child development class, so she always has a teenager to hold on to!

 After school or on her days off, we do playdates with her cute little friends. Here we are at Jump 2 it with Caroline and Ella. We usually have more little friends, but they weren't here today. She loves them so much! We are so grateful for good friends!