Reunion Time

Over spring break, we were lucky enough to spend our time in Iowa with a bunch of family.

Emma shared a little love with Grandma Hunger (she's turns 95 in a couple months)!

Jared was very content with Grandma White (she will be 93 in May).

Jared with Dennis's aunt... he loves to be loved

The token redheads on the Hunger side and Sarah

More than half of the 19 grandchildren at a museum

Jared and his buddy Evan who is just a month or so older

It would be wonderful if we were able to see our family more often, but for now we'll keep taking vacations to Iowa and Utah!

Icky Sicky

Early Sunday morning, Sarah started yelling out "Emma's burning up! Her head is hot and she won't move!" My week changed right then and there. After she slept at least half of that day, I took Emma to the doctor on Monday.

Influenza B...

She got prescribed tamiflu, with a warning to watch for fevers in anyone else in our home.

By Tuesday night, Sarah had started in with it.

Our week has consisted of drinking lots of water, milkshakes, juice, and eating pretty much nothing. The girls take turns taking naps all day long, and then still sleep 12 hours each night. They've been hit hard!

I am just praying that the rest of us somehow avoid it all.

It hasn't been much fun, but there have been some funny little highlights along the way:

Yesterday, Emma threw up. It was THE WORST I have ever smelled. I tried so hard not to, but I started gagging while I was cleaning it up. I couldn't stop gagging, and Andrew started impersonating me. He'd make the noise and say, "I trow up. I trow up."

Getting in the car to head to the doctor's office Monday, Emma declared,
"Everything hurts except my toes!"

Emma was being a little quiet one afternoon, so I asked her how she felt. Her response?
"I feel like Emma."

A few hours before Sarah's fever showed up, she was coughing into her elbow like she's been taught. Emma was with her and said,
"Cough on me Sarah. I'm already sick!"

Sarah came up with a special soup recipe to help her feel better.
"Sarah's Special Soup"
"2 onions, 6 pineapples, 8 tomatoes. Cook it for 15 minutes... no, I mean 15 seconds. And that's all! Make it when you're sick. It's very yummy!"

The Big 3...

Our big boy is three years old! I've always felt like the third birthday is a big milestone. The kids really change from being a little toddler to a pre-schooler. We were lucky enough to be in Iowa with family for Andrew's birthday. It was a big party and lots of fun. Aunt Megan made the horse cake, and Andrew loved it! He kept galloping around the house yelling, "Yah horsey, yah!"

Andrew got a HUGE breath in preparation of blowing out the candles

And, he used a bit of spit to aid that breath.
It made some of his uncles a little wary of eating the cake afterwards!

We got Andrew a cowboy hat and vest for his gifts this year.
I made the vest, and we even found a little sheriff's badge with his name on it.
(He's covering it with his hand in the picture).

Lucky boy had a second party with Dennis's grandma and aunt later on.
Andrew called it his "little birthday."

Here's a little info about our boy:

He is an early riser. Rain or shine, Andrew is awake by 6:30 am.

Like most little boys, he loves anything with wheels. Although if its a toy, he likes to remove the tires. We have a jar full of various sized tires in our kitchen now.

He is fascinated with hitches. When he sees a car, truck, tractor, etc... he has to see if it has a hitch. If it does, he asks where the trailer is.

He is in constant motion. Whether it is chasing his sisters, dumping out a box of toys, running around the house in his underwear, or teaching Jared to play with him - Andrew is going, going going!

He has a love affair with the color green. Given a choice between any two objects, the green one will always win... hands down, no questions asked.

He is very polite. Of all our kids, we can always count on Andrew to say "thank you" and "you're welcome" when he should. The "you're welcome" really cracks me up.

He is a handful. I have a hard time keeping up with his antics a lot of the time, and I have called Dennis more than once telling him Andrew may not survive till the end of the day.

He has won our hearts over the last three years, and we are happy we get to have him for eternity.

Sharp Dressed Man

Clean shirt, new shoes
and I don't know what I am gonna do.
Silk suit, black tie,
I don't need a reason why.
They come runnin' just as fast as they can
cause every girl is crazy 'bout a sharp dressed man.

Gold watch, diamond ring,
I ain't missin' not a single thing.
cuff-links, stick pin
when I step out I'm gonna do you in.
They come a runnin' just as fast as they can
cause every girl is crazy 'bout a sharp dressed man.

Top coat, Top hat,
And I don't worry cause my wallets fat.
Black shades, white gloves,
lookin' sharp, lookin' for love.
They come runnin' just as fast as they can
cause every girl is crazy 'bout a sharp dressed man.

He may not have a top hat, cuff links, a silk suit, or even shoes.... but this girl is CRAZY about this sharp dressed little man. I made Jared a few onesies with ties sewn on to them, and I am loving his new style for church!

Gettting Away With It

Yes, that is my son.

Wearing shorts with a jacket.

In the kitchen.

On his bike.

With his chin in his hands.

Giving me a puppy dog look.

I just couldn't say "no" to that face!

Just Zoo It!

Our local zoo had free admission every Monday in February. I didn't know this until halfway through the month, but luckily we were able to take advantage of the deal once or twice.

On Valentine's day, our friend called and asked if we could join her at the zoo. I told her no because Jared had a check-up (and an ear infection, we later found out). She called back a few minutes later and asked if Andrew could come along anyway. What an angel! She was willing to take my crazy little man along with her and her two boys. Andrew was thrilled to go to the zoo with his best buddy, Brody. They had a fun day just being boys. And, my sweet Emma was the happiest little girl. At one point in the day, she turned to me and said, "MOMMY! It's just me, and baby Jared, and you today!"

These two guys have been friends from the start. We go to church together, and they are only 2 months apart in age. Andrew is always so excited to see Brody at church and I can usually even get him to wear his tie when I remind him that Brody wears his tie too.

Andrew really loved the goats. I don't get it, but I love it anyway.



So, this week I decided we needed to use up that last Monday of the month. We went with: Andrew's best buddy, his mom, and their little baby, and another friend, and her cute crazy boy. Poor Emma was the only little girl, but she enjoyed herself anyway. I think we only saw 2 or 3 different kinds of animals because the kids had so much fun playing in the playground areas! It gave them so much joy to just be free in the outdoors.

These three boys all have very strong personalities, so there were a lot of disagreements! When it's all said and done, they still love each other... and they wouldn't be boys without a little competition, right?

Brayden, Brody, Andrew, and Emma. We packed our lunch in Emma's lunch bag she uses for pre-school, so she wanted to carry it around ALL DAY long.

Our two little baby boys bundled up together - Brody's little brother is just a few weeks older than Jared, so these guys can be friends too.

The kids got to ride a baby elephant. They didn't seem to notice that it was bronze. They really weren't that picky.

Happy kiddos! We didn't have any quarters with us (Hello! Free zoo day, remember?) But, a nice family nearby used their money and gave the kids a ride.