My boy is 5 years old!

My son is now 5 years old! It is hard to believe that he is old enough to start kindergarten! We decided to wait to give him a little more time to be ready. He loves to learn and I am sure would love it. However, I would rather him be older than younger. Plus my Uncle Lynn once asked if I would rather him have an extra year to be a kid or an extra year to be an adult. We chose kid. For his birthday party the Saturday before his actual birthday we had a splash party with a slip n slide, lots of sprinklers, and water balloons. Oh and a delicious chocolate cake. On his actual birthday we went bowling and then to the Royals game that night. He got special treatment at the game. He got stuff from girls in the KC Crew and a man sitting behind us got him a baseball with Kauffman Stadium on it from the gift shop. I think he had a great birthday. We even took him golfing the next day! Here are 5 things that are great about Liam:
*He doesn't know a stranger. He talks to everyone and wants to be friends with everyone. He actual talks a little too much sometimes! :)
*He loves to learn. Recently he even said, "I want to learn so I can be smarter".
*He loves to share his knowledge even if his ideas are a little off and don't make sense.
*He wants to be a professional golfer when he grows up. He even got a gift certificate for golf lessons that came with a golf shirt and golf balls. When we golfed the day after his birthday he was very adamant about wearing his new golf shirt.
*He is a kind and loving boy. He tries to help his sister and other little kids when he sees they need help. This kindness makes him a little sensitive at times too.

Another 3 year old!

Now it is my little girl's turn to be 3 years old. I am not even sure where to start with her except that she is her own girl. She is a very sassy girl that I think will have no trouble standing up for herself. She has been so excited to turn three and for days has been showing people with her fingers how old she is. Here are some fun facts about her.

*She love Princess stuff.
*She loves to wear dresses.
*She loves to wear heels.
*She likes to sing and her favorite song for a while was part of that world from The Little Mermaid.
*She loves to copy her brother and beat up on him.
*She is dramatic.
*She is a fast learner.
*She likes to talk in silly voices and make silly faces.
*She loves to dance and can really shake her hips.
*She can act shy at times but she really isn't

Even though she wears my patience down some days I am grateful to be her Mommy. She brings joy and laughter into our lives and I don't know what I would do without her. She has made our family complete.

My boy turned 4!!!

So my little man is now 4 years old. He is such a funny little guy. He does things in his own way and in his own time so it is best not to push him too hard. He can be whiny at times but overall he is a great kid. I love to call him the professor or the elephant. I call him the professor because he is very inquisitive and wants to know about things. Then we does know about things he likes to tell others about what he knows. He is the elephant because he has a great memory. He remembers a surprising amount of information. Here are a few more facts about my big guy.
*He likes Transformers and Spiderman.
*The movie Spiderman scared him but he loved the Transformers movie!
*He loves books and gets frustrated that he can't read yet.
*He likes to watch shows about animals.
*He likes going to the zoo and still talks about the white alligator we saw in Omaha a year ago.
*He worries about his sister and tries to help her even though she doesn't want it and then it usually causes a fight.
*He is a mama's boy.
*He is just like his father!
*He loves to play with his cousins.
*He will choose water instead of ice cream!!!
*He doesn't like broccoli.
*He says he wants to be a golfer and a chef when he grows up.

Well that is just a little about him. I could go on and on. I am so proud to be his mother and every year I get to have with him makes my life even better.

The Holidays 2009

My kids are at great ages for Christmas, they are excited about everything and they love to sing Jingle Bells! It has been such a fun time around our house. All Liam wanted was a train table and Santa came through. The table was on the lower level of the house so when he came down to the tree upstairs he didn't see it and was disappointed. Then we went down to go through stockings and he didn't even notice the table. So Joe threw something by it and asked Liam to get it so he turned to grab it and then saw the table. He got all excited and kept saying "Thank you Santa". It was too cute. Lainey didn't really care what she got but she did get princess stuff and dress up clothes which makes her happy. We did take the kids to see Santa at Crown Center this year and Lainey got scared. Liam just jumped right on his lap no problems, but when we put Lainey on his lap she cried. So I sat next to her and then she was fine. It was crazy because she is such a fearless girl, I didn't think Santa would be a problem for her. Overall it was a great time and it is so much better with kids. I was really excited to see their reactions which makes being a parent so much fun.

A 2 year old!

I now officially have a 2 year old daughter. She is such a sweet, sassy, and fun little girl to have around. I am so happy that she was sent to me to raise. She is such a joy to have around (even when she has the crazies). She loves to dance and spin around. She loves to say Cinderella in a sing-song way. She loves baby dolls and stuffed animals. She loves to follow her big brother around and chase and tackle him. It is wonderful to have a daughter.
Today we had a party for her and her cousin (he is 9 days older than her)and she had a lot of fun running around with her cousins and friends. We are very fortunate to have such wonderful people in our lives who care so much about us and our children. She had a great day and I hope she has many more to come. I look forward to watching her grow and have more good times ahead.
Oh and she finally got the big girl bed she has been wanting! I guess she isn't a baby anymore!

A three year old!!!

My baby boy is 3 years old today. It is hard to believe 3 years have already passed. It was tough to get him out and he still fights me to this day but he is such a great son. I am very fortunate to have him.
He is such a fun kid to have around. He loves to sing songs from movies and he picks them up quickly. He loves the movie The Three Amigos. This has made him interested in cowboys. He will put on his hat and boots and then go out to the swing set to ride the buckin' bronco! He still loves cars too. Just the other day he was hanging out in his room, lining up his cars like they were in a parking lot (he even told me they were in a parking lot). He says some of the funniest stuff that I am not always sure where he gets it from. He has also gotten into dinosaurs and he seems to catch onto the names very quickly. He just amazes me all the time at what he catches onto, notices, and remembers.
For his birthday we invited some friends and family over last night for cake and ice cream. He had a great time playing. He really just wanted to open presents and it was really hard for him to wait. He made it till after cake and ice cream though and was then able to play with his new toys. Then today for his actual birthday we took him to the T-Rex dinosaur themed restaurant. He has become a bit of a chicken recently and was scared at first. Luckily they gave us a table by the aquarium which helped him to ease into the dinosaur atmosphere. Then he loved it and after we ate he got to make a dinosaur at the Build-A-Dino Workshop (little sister got one too).
Overall I think he had a fun time and I am excited to see how he continues to grow and change from year to year.
Here is a little slideshow of him over the years with a few pictures from his birthday this year.

My mom, the birthday girl!!!

Fifty years ago today my mom was born. She was about 3 months early and barely weighed 3 pounds. She wasn't expected to survive, but she did. That is something that makes my mom great. Since birth she has been a fighter. She has made it through many tough challenges because of that strength. One of the hardest things we have ever been through as a family was losing my sister, Abbie. She did 6 years ago today. Yep, that's right she died on our mother's birthday, so it is always hard for my mom to celebrate her birth because she misses Abbie so much. Though we miss Abbie everyday I think it is important to celebrate my mom's life. Since it is a milestone birthday I made a video of pictures of her throughout the years. She is a great mother and I am so fortunate to say that she is my mother. HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!!