Fruit Kabobs

I follow one of my friend's blogs and saw her fun idea of having her children make fruit kabobs.  She used it as a way to teach patterns.  We had a cousin staying with us last week and he enjoyed making kabobs with us.

JOYFUL TORNADO

We have a joyful tornado that goes through our home almost everyday.  

If you hear Little J making some JOYFUL noises or grunts and 

something hitting the floor every few seconds, you know our tornado has hit.  

It might be our front entry closest:

Or a kitchen drawer:

This little absolutely adorable tornado can come and 

go so quickly and leave quite a mess.

Adventureland

The children received an early birthday present from Grandpa and Grandma -

season passes to Adventureland for the summer.  They are so excited.  

We even convinced daddy to go for the opening day. 

Purple Girl was MORE than excited to jump right into the rides.  She even went on two of the big roller coasters with her daddy.  She enjoyed one, not such a fan of the other.

Purple Girl is a JOY to go on rides with.  Her excitement is shown

all over her face and it can't help but make you laugh when 

she is holding her hands in the air and giggling.

Busy Bee wasn't sure of the amusement park at first.  She 

kept asking when the noise would stop.  Whenever a roller coaster 

or another ride made a loud noise she would cover her 

ears and say "Not again."

As the day went on, however, she warmed up to the park

and finally did go some kiddie rides and enjoyed them.

Little J rode around in the stroller content for most of the time.

However, it is official that he can get himself out of the stroller.

Big Brother even watched him pull off his straps and stand up.

Little J was tired out by the end of the afternoon and fell asleep in the

stroller just before we were ready to leave.

So, daddy sat with Little J while mom and the three oldest rode the train.

It was a fun first day and we were blessed to be able

to go and have a some nice family time together.

We are excited that Daddy choose to get a season pass too - 

the two oldest are especially excited since mommy can't handle

going on the BIG rides with them like daddy can.

Thanks Grandpa and Grandma!!!

Precious Curls

Little J has some adorable curls and I know his daddy won't let him keep them for long, so I am enjoying them while they last.

Sweet Cousin

We had the cousins over the

other day and this sweet cousin

was so gentle and loving to Busy Bee.

She was helping her swing and enjoyed

pushing her.

We are so blessed and grateful to have

these cousins living close by.

Visitor

Aunt Fell was out of town with her daughter for the week visiting

our sister in South Carolina.  So, we were blessed to have her son, my nephew, 

come to our house during the day for three days last week.

These two boys had SO much fun together.

It was sad for them when the week was over.

Big J kept telling me how he wished

Cousin J was his brother so he would

never have to leave and be with him all the time.

Cousin J LOVES Little J and was so helpful to me with him.

He would follow Little J around and keep an eye on him for me.

He also helped feed him and even attempted changing a dirty diaper.

                                  

Little J loved taking his cousin's shoes and carrying them around this house.  He liked the Cousin J would follow him around to see where he might drop his shoes.

It was a blessing having this guy in our home.

He was so well behaved...his parents

truly are doing a wonderful job with him.

Shopping Helpers

Purple Girl

Escape Artist

Little J is my escape artist.  He does not like to be pinned down and

 has found ways to get out of most things I try to put him in.  

He will no longer sit still in the bathtub seat - 

he is constantly pulling on the side of the tub to crawl out.

He used to sit in a seat in the bathroom while I showered in the morning. 

 This is no longer a possibility, because 

He was strapped in, but still crawled out.

So, he now gets to eat breakfast in the mornings 

with daddy and his big siblings.

Then the other day we were out front 

and Little J was happily sitting in the stroller - with

strap around waist and shoulder harnesses on.

I turn around and see him

I don't know how he got out of this one.

Happy Easter

Easter or Resurrection Day is an exciting time in our home.  We love reflecting on the life of Christ, the importance of his death and most importantly the truth that HE ROSE from the grave and lives today.  We are blessed to have eternal life secure in HIM because of his death and resurrection.

After church we headed to Grandpa 

and Grandma's to celebrate with cousins.

The boys:

 The girls:

We had a fun filled day - yummy food, 

many treats, fun activities and lots of 

time to play with cousins.  

By the end, Grandma needed to rest....

However, I do not believe

she was going to get 

any sleep with all the grandchildren

who wanted to join her.

Baby Doll

Little J is so cute when he sees a baby doll.  He loves to hold them and "talk" to them.

I thought this picture was so sweet of him hugging the baby doll.

I think in this picture he is either try to kiss the doll or eat it.  I would guess eat it since he tries to put everything in his mouth for a taste.

Daddy's Littles

Daddy's two little's sure do love him!  Little J can't get enough of his daddy.  Daddy was dancing with the children and Little J wanted to be right in the mix.  When I (mommy) went to take Little J from Daddy so Busy Bee could have a turn, he started crying and was quite upset. So, daddy took him back and picked up Busy Bee too!

Buddies

These two have such a special relationship.  They love each other so much and it is so fun to watch them interact.  Little J will follow Busy Bee around wherever she goes.  She had a chair ready for him to sit in next to her at the door as they looked outside.  The sitting didn't last long, but it was cute while it did.

Snuggle Bug

Little J is quite my snuggle bug.  If you pick him up, he will often just cuddle right into your shoulder and give you a hug.  Or if I am sitting on the floor, he will walk over to give hugs.  When we were outside a few days ago I was sitting in a lawn chair taking pictures of the children playing.  As I was, Little J came right over and found a way to snuggle into my legs.

He stayed in this position for quite some time.

Love this guy so much!!!!

Belly Swinging

Daddy built the children a swing set in the backyard last year and it has been a HUGE BLESSING!  It has even strengthen our children's relationships as they will go outside and swing together and giggle and laugh and create new games to play.  It is fun to observe.  The other day they were enjoying trying to perfect the belly swing.  

Whoops...let's try again!

Ready, set, GO!

Little J is not ready for the belly swing yet, but

he enjoyed watching his siblings.

Peek into our Backyard

Spring has arrived and we have enjoyed a few nice days just playing in the backyard.  If you would have peaked into our backyard a few days ago, you would have seen:

The children enjoying playing bubbles together:

The two oldest were trying to pop the bubbles

as Busy Bee made them fly.  They

were having so much fun.

After bubbles, you might have seen

Mom and Purple Girl running and up down the hill:

Big J playing golf!  

 Busy Bee continuing with the bubbles -

this kept her entertained for quite some time.

And Little J examining his own golf club.

It was gorgeous weather and 

we are blessed to have a backyard to play in.

Once again - we praise God for the simple JOYS in life!

Easter Program

The children were blessed to be able to put on an Easter program with their cousins this year at a local nursing home as well as at the apartments where their Great Grandma lives in town.

Before we left home I attempted to get a picture of the children dressed up.

It was a full morning.  We started off the day at the nursing home.

Purple Girl is such a mom - she noticed her 

cousin walking away, so she had to grab her and 

then found a way to keep her up front.

Her mommy was busy - she was the singing coordinator!

After the performance at the nursing home we

headed to GiGi's.

The children had fun singing several songs that included actions

and also reciting Bible verses.

Here is the group (minus the two little boys).

The children did GREAT overall.  

Of course with several little ones, 

nothing goes perfect - but often the imperfect

moments cause the most smiles and JOY!

After the performances we headed to

McDonald's for a special lunch!