mother's day 2014

i am so lucky to be the mother of these five wonderful children of mine.
and so lucky to have such a wonderful mother and mother-in-law in my life.
darrel was starting to get mad right as we were trying to take a picture :)

we hosted mother's day brunch for chris' side at our house this year.
it was lovely- i wish i would have gotten some pics of everyone and the pretties i had out.
john was a powerhouse on saturday squeezing and squeezing oranges for our fresh juice.
andrew did a good amount of squeezing too (the other two were gone).
the babe looked too darn cute napping while everyone was busy in the kitchen on sunday...

mom and i got our nails done (ella had already gone with friends - a rare occurrence),

and we shopped a bit before my side came over for dinner.

we had just started playing monopoly when my brothers arrived-

little d was mesmerized by my brother john- he immediately sat down right next to him.

i just loved watching him sit there with that baby of mine and entertain him...

had to include these of the cutie playing...

it was a lovely mother's day...

reading buddies

these are some of my most favorite recent photos of my two youngest boys.
john john reading a baby book to little baby d.
so stinkin cute, just love these shots of them...

how lucky this little guy is to have these wonderful siblings surrounding him.
and they (we) in turn are so lucky to have him among us each day as well.

john has read to his baby bro since he was an infant.
baby d was just two months old in these next two shots...

and his other two brothers have also read and studied next to their baby brother
for many many months, for all of his life so far...

god has truly blessed us by giving us this precious little guy-
andrew keeps asking if we can give him something to freeze him.
and ella cries at the thought if him not being a baby next year.
yes, babies are the best, and yes they grow up way too fast!

staring contest

these two cracked me up back in march, just looking at each other.
they keep each other entertained at times and baby d knows lady's name very well.
he is learning the kids' names too - seems to be learning them and their different sounds.

this little baby boy is growing up way too fast.
and i am way going to try to catch up with all he and everyone has been doing!

weekend review

baby sleeping 10 hrs. thru the night -
i think due to the massive amount of avocado/guacamole he had the night before.
the kids loved seeing him sleeping in his crib in the morning with his bum up in the air :)
yes, those are flowered sheets (haven't found the boy ones i must have somewhere!)

 followed by morning cuteness...

saturday morning was glorious outside.
mowing was done and then we spent hours outside...
trampoline routines were choreographed, baby swing was put up, swimming was done.

followed by showers outside - we had one installed last year about this time -
the kids love it. don't think any of us even showered inside last summer (minus chris).
and a picnic lunch to top off our outdoor enjoyment in the backyard.

 

later that evening we ran into uncle kev after mass.

and chris and i were able to meet up with a dear friend who was in town & her hubby.

we had so much to catch up on, i didn't even think to take a picture.

sunday brought morning walk/training wheel free bike ride to g & g's for breakfast.
and a day full of projects, errands, and family dinner at great grandpa's house.
we are soaking up these days that we can be outdoors before the heat of the summer!

8th grade football champs and SOM

back in the fall the 8th graders won the catholic school 8th gr. flag football tournament.
i missed a bunch of their games since i had just had darrel and it was blazen hot.
but, i made it to (i think, if i recall correctly) all of the tournament games.

such a fun group of kids and parents, hard to believe they won't all be together next yr.
i will miss seeing them all, it is so hard to believe they will be graduating soon.
andrew has commented all year on how he will miss them next year-
and how he does not want them to graduate...they really are a great group.

it has been rumored for years that the p.e. teacher is retiring.
he has been there since we were in grade school.
and he has been wanting to win this tourney before he retires...so they pulled it off for him.

and this first born of mine was voted student of the month this week by his peers.
for the skill of listening, both in class and as a friend.
which made me realize that being a good listener is really important in life -

because there is nothing worse than having a conversation and realize the other person

isn't really listening to what you are saying!!

yes, we are quite proud of this boy - way to go lc! :)

st. patrick's day 2014

the school the kids attend is run by and order of nuns from ireland, so it's a big day.
a carnival is held every year during the second half of the school day.
so of course the kids get free dress if they wear green- here's our quick morn pic...

each grade is in charge of a game or food and it is an afternoon full of fun.
usually it is a bit warm, but this year it was the perfect temperature for being outside.
ella snatched up the babe as soon as i arrived at school...

the kindergarten booth is the cake walk (they get twinkies, ding-dongs, etc..)
i worked it this year - it was so fun to see kids from all grades coming over to it.
here are some of my cuties participating in the fun.

always such a fun day and so wonderful the school celebrates the culture of its founders.
can't believe it's christopher's last one as a student there.
really hit me last week as i was filling out the registration forms for next year -
and the school put three in our packet instead of four!