Big Boy Bed

Collin and Daddy did a great job putting the toddler bed back together.

Collin was very excited to help!

And even more excited when it was all finished!

He couldn't have been happier when we put it in his room. He LOVES having a big boy bed!!

Pretending to sleep....

Gotta get all of his animals set up just right.

His new bed looks super cute with his name and monkeys.

Collin did amazing his first night (and every time since)!!! He never even moves from the spot we lay him down. He is such a good boy. His siblings were much harder, so we are pretty much in shock that it can be this easy! We're very thankful for our sweet boy who is such a good sleeper. My favorite part is when I come to get him in the morning or after his nap Collin lifts his little head up, gives me a big smile and declares, "I sleep in my big boy bed!"

"I'm big enough for a big boy bed??" I know, I can't believe it either Collin!

Injuries

Anna and Benjamin were doing kung fu together when Anna ended up with this injury by her eye.

A few days before Collin tripped and fell into a foot stool and got a huge bruise/cut on his forehead. Dave had them pose with their "boo-boos" and had Benjamin put his hands up since he is injury free.

We had chili for supper one night and afterwards ice cream. Collin liked the chili so much that he kept going back and forth between the two. Dave thought it was a pretty gross combo of foods to be eating, but I just enjoy that Collin loves so many different foods (unlike his siblings).

1st Sleepover

Since we had a low key birthday party for Benjamin at his grandparents' house, we told him that he could have his first sleepover that way he could celebrate with his friends when we got back home. He was so excited and counted down the days for about two weeks. We were very fortunate to have four sweet boys be able to join us and they had a great time! (PS the boy closest to me in this picture, Zeke, told me afterwards about how funny a face he had made and he was right. He's also the boy that has captured Anna's young heart. She wants to do everything the same as him and tells us almost daily that she is going to marry him. I think we may be in trouble considering she is only three!)

Present time! Benjamin was super sweet to all of his friends as he opened their gifts.

It was great seeing how excited the kids got with each present!

Everyone lined up with anticipation of the bouncy house....

Dave had them yell "abracadabra" over and over again to make it inflate which made the excitement even more intense! : )

After the bouncy fun everyone was ready for a yummy treat so headed back upstairs for ice cream and fruit.

We finished the night with watching Kung Fu Panda 2 together. It was a great night and Benjamin was so happy! I think he wants to make this his birthday routine from now on.

50 Degrees in January??

Since when is it so nice in January? We decided to take full advantage and met Dave at the park in the afternoon. The kids all went running when Daddy arrived!

Collin was too scared to go down the slide so he talked his poor Daddy into joining him. It was quite the sight!

Collin is getting so big and is so much fun right now. He really is one of the most animated little ones I've ever known!

Anna quickly made friends with the only other kid that was at the park (like she usually does) and before long a fun game of hide & seek was under way.

Collin was so funny! He would always just hide tucked at the bottom of a slide. I guess his motto was, "If I can't see you, you can't see me!"

Peak-a-boo!

They found Benjamin! Who is turning into quite the good hider, by the way. He's really patient too.

After the playground fun was had, we decided to climb the tower as a family. I moved the car next to the tower while Dave and the kids walked over. I surprised the kids by being at the top of this hill.

They quickly (and excitedly) ran up the hill to meet me. It turned into a love fest for me and for the baby! : ) I'm very blessed!!

We made it to the top and it was a great family evening. We're very thankful for surprise nice weather days!!

Princess Ball

I signed Dave and Anna up for a princess ball for daddies and their daughters. Anna and I were both very excited that she could wear her old flower girl dress. She looked so beautiful! The thing about Anna that is so special is she is even more beautiful on the inside as she is on the out (which I think is saying a lot!). She is her own person. I don't think we share many traits at all and that is just fine by me. I love her so very much for the amazing little girl that God created. She is extremely sweet and loving and also so animated and spunky. She loves to make friends with every one. She is incredibly social and it makes me smile every time I watch her make a new friend. She has an amazing imagination and she inspires all of the rest of her family as well. Basically, we love her so very, very much!!! : )

She is a lot like her Daddy and I think that is wonderful. I pray that they will share a special relationship that will last a lifetime!

One of the most exciting parts for Anna was that she got to ride in her Daddy's car. It was like her own special carriage!

They had a "red carpet" event for Moms to come and take pictures of the dads/daughters as they enter the ball. So the boys and I tagged along at first and enjoyed watching them walk in together.

We had to wait a bit for it to be Anna and Dave's turn and when they finally came down the red carpet Collin was so excited to see his Daddy that he went running....

They had a great time dancing the night away! (The boys and I had a fun evening playing games together too.)

Four

Back in the beautiful days of November we spent a really great evening in Brown County......

It was a great setting to tell Dave he is going to be a daddy again! We are expecting our fourth baby in July!!! We are both so excited (and blessed)!

 It was hard to wait to tell the kids, but we wanted to make sure that we made it most of the way through the first trimester. By Christmas, we were so happy to finally share the special news with them. So we made this print out and put it in a frame. The kids unwrapped it as one of their Christmas Eve presents to show them we have a new person in our family.....

It was so fun to finally tell them and they are so excited!!!

At Home Fun

We've had a few snows that didn't amount to anything we could really play in. This snow still wasn't much, but we were all itching to get out and have some snow fun. So we made the most of what we had. Collin has been so excited for snow. He asks about it all the time!

Throwing snowballs at each other.

 Anna was hard to catch for a picture. She just ran and ran and ran. I was so tickled by her that I made sure to show Dave all the paths that she created with her little footprints when he got home from work. She is full of life!

Benjamin enjoyed making snowballs.....

....and throwing them!

Grandma and Grandpa gave the kids a big surprise for Christmas with their very own bounce house. I still can't believe we own this. The kids LOVE it!!!

Monkey see, monkey do!