Future Hairstyle

Tonight I cut Jacob and Nathaniel's hair. Leah sat and watched. She ALWAYS wants a haircut. But, since she'd already taken a bath, I told her she'd get too itchy so we'd have to do it some other time. Later on, when we were going to bed, she said, "Mom, someday can I have my hair like John the Baptist?"

Oh My Darling, Clementine!

Sunday evening around 5pm, I went to Price Chopper to pick up a few things. They had the 5lb boxes of clementines on sale. I asked Patrick if he thought anyone would eat them and he said, "I would." So, I bought a box and brought them home. And low and behold, the kids loved them and in about 24 hours, the whole box was gone! I don't think Jacob ate any, but the rest of the kids did and I was surprised to see the empty box last night. Glad they liked them.

So then I was thinking, they were still on sale, should I buy more? Then I rethought - no way. I'm sure that if I do, no one will eat a single one. Just never can tell, but I'm sure it's in my cards that it would be a different story with the 2nd. So, we'll call it good with one quick box! Ha.

Hard Workers in Action

Well, the basement project is officially underway. Patrick has decided to dive in. He's started some of the framing, but couldn't have done it without his big helpers. When he bought the supplies, we had the whole family helping to carry the wood and insulation to the basement from the garage. They did great!

Happy 7th Birthday, Leyton & Nathaniel! (1/7/11)

Another part of our Happy New Year times (along with the year, and Patrick & I's anniversary - 13 this year by the way) is the wonderful celebration of Leyton & Nathaniel's birthday. What a fun day. It was a Friday and I was actually able to arrange being off work, so that was extra nice, too, to spend the day with the family. I took treats to their classes in the afternoon and got to read a couple of books they chose to the classes as well. Then at home, we had an at home family celebration that evening. The menu they chose was "breakfast for dinner" so we had bacon, scrambled eggs, chocolate chip pancakes, and wheat pancakes. Yum. They all enjoyed it quite a bit. Aunt Stacy came by and was able to join us as well. We had decorated chocolate chip cookie cake for dessert.

As we always say, time sure flies. These boys have come a long way and are such nice boys (I'm biased). Nathaniel is really a thinker and he enjoys playing basketball, doing projects around the house, and reading, along with Star Wars and playing with his siblings. He has a great smile and a huge heart. In fact, he really helped Patrick today with the basement as Patrick has started the framing for finishing the basement...Patrick put up a wall section which will go to the storage area and Nathaniel said, "Dad, where's the door?" Patrick mentioned several times today that he sure is glad Nathaniel mentioned that! Ha. Nathaniel is a very hard worker, too. He always likes to work and do his best. He's told us that his teacher says that in first grade, you "always have to be busy, always" in reference to him getting his morning work done (sometimes some of the kids have a hard time getting it all done). A patient, sweet, loving boy.

Leyton is laid back about almost everything and is pretty content going with the flow. He is, however, a perfectionist. He likes to have all of his school work perfect and takes pride in doing his best. He also enjoys basketball, reading, and playing all sorts of things. He enjoys Star Wars, KU, and playing with his siblings. He takes good care of his younger siblings and they often go to him with their questions on how to do something or how to spell a word. He's very good with them and really makes Anne laugh. A carefree but caring, loving, sweet boy.

Hmm, I'm pretty sure they weigh around 55 lb each now...imaging their start at just a total of 8lb: Leyton was 3lb 13oz, Nathaniel was 4lb 3oz! Crazy. Boys, the true gift of your birthday is you! We love you!

Thought for the Day

"All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness." -Hebrews 12:11

No School today!

So the boys are out of school today for MLK Jr. It is so much fun having them home. Last week they had two snow days, on Mon. & Tues., and that was a lot of fun, too. I enjoy having them home & I know they enjoy an extra day to play. This morning, they've already played Blokus, Flip Uno, Sorry, and Chutes & Ladders. Then they played matchbox cars in the kitchen, and now they have moved on to Light Saber battles - that could go on for a while. I love hearing them playing and having fun. The girls have been playing playdoh and pretend kitchen stuff. Anne pretty much just tries to be part of whatever is going on. Sometimes, it happens to be destructive to others' efforts (like a lineup of about 30 matchbox cars getting kicked apart - not intentional, but you know). She's a hoot.

The only bummer of the day...I don't get to stay home for all of it...I have to work today. At least I get to spend the morning with them.

Christmas 2010 in Pictures

Christmas Morning at Home

Christmas Eve at Grandma & Grandpa Robinson's

Christmas Eve at the Lee Home

Christmas Cookie Preparation

Christmas 2010

Christmas this year was another wonderful season filled with many new memories. We went to visit Beth, Robert & Mya for lunch and they were wonderful hosts. Chicken nuggets, pasta with sauce, fancy cupcakes, and much more. We had a great time spending the afternoon with them and sharing in Mya's first Christmas. We went to Christmas Eve Mass and then traveled to Grandma Sally & Grandpa Dan's for evening festivities with the Robinsons. It was a wonderful time. Then, we nestled in our beds in hopes that St. Nick would make an appearance...he did. Christmas morning was fun at home. Leah slept in until almost 9am, so the boys were REALLY anxious to get to the presents. Then, when she did get up, I actually had a big breakfast ready to eat, so we convinced the kids to eat first (can you believe that?). So we ate breakfast, then enjoyed the festivities. It was a lot of fun and we really enjoyed spending the day together at home. We are so blessed and really felt the spirit of Christmas. The next day, we were even suprised by a trip from Grandma Donna & Grandpa Jerry as they came through on their way home from Texas. Always nice to see them, too!

Happy 5th Birthday, Jacob! (12/12)

Jacob had a wonderful birthday this year. As I always feel, it is so hard to believe he's five. He is a true sweetheart. He is such a content guy. He has grown up a lot and really mellowed. If we catch him when he's really tired or just can't get something worked out, he'll get a bit upset, but those times have become quite few and far between. He enjoys playing Star Wars with his brothers as well as on his own - very independent guy. He's also very sweet to his sisters. Still has a special place for Anne. He is calm and tenderhearted. I love that even Tom and Jerry can scare him sometimes if the episode has a big animal in it or something like that. He loves music, too, especially Dierks Bentley, Brad Paisley, Chris Tomlin, and Lady Antebellum (Hmm, wonder where his influence comes from). You can often catch him in the offic with the music playing and he'll be playing his air guitar and singing along...as if he's studying the lyrics. He's a caring boy who really thinks - he'll think of a consequence a few steps down the thought process and just want everyone to be ok and happy. I'm pretty sure the additional Star Wars shirts he's received are saving me a lot of loads of laundry as he wears one every day. He's also not much behind his brothers on size; sometimes people actually ask if he & Leyton are the twins. Ha. I just love that little guy. He wants to stay home every day and just be home, play, and be happy. If only it could always be that way. Happy Birthday, dear Jacob. You are loved!

Travel Troubles?

Interesting thing I found today. I searched on Expedia.com to look at hotel options for us en route to Destin. We figured we'd spend one night there on the way, maybe around Birmingham. Anyway, I entered the following information: Birmingham, AL, the dates, 2 adults, 5 children (& entered their ages). And the search results: plenty, but each and every entry said "max children exceeded." Hmm. I hadn't anticipated that. So, I searched a bit more on "max hotel occupancy" and saw a few articles addressing this specific type of issue as compared to just a large number of people trying to stay in one room. And then, I came across a site that may actually be helpful for a family like us. Good find. I'm sure it'll lead us to where we'll stay; you can search by location and it lists options that sleep 5, 6, 7, or 8 people. Whew. I really was not liking the idea of figuring out how we'd be in a hotel for that one night. Who'd have known (maybe lots of people, but I hadn't considered that we technically couldn't stay in most rooms)?