Asthma and Emma's Birthday Party

Colin's asthma has been acting up the past few days. We tried increasing his treatments, but he still wasn't improving. To Acute Care Kids we went for some oral steroids. Darn it! Hopefully, he will be on the mend soon! ABX just to be on the safe side.

Emma had her 6th birthday party at Pump it Up. It was the first time Victoria has been there, since she was a baby. The first time Colin, Kaden, and Katharine had been there in a long time. They were thrilled and made themselves right at home! Victoria was really pensive and would only watch for several minutes. Then, she finally decided to take me up on the offer of sliding down the big slide with her! Once she started, it was difficult to get her to stop! She even went a few times on her own! Like her sister, fearless! Has to do whatever big brothers are doing! She is really growing up! They all played very well together and were happy to see Emma :-).

Pumpkin patch and Halloween 2011

We went to the pumpkin patch a few days ago. The kids all picked out a pumpkin. Victoria picked out a few little ones :-). They enjoyed running in the kiddie hay bale maze! Then we got to go on a hay ride! They all love that! Katharine then went to bounce in the bounce house while Victoria continued to peruse pumpkins, and the boys inspected the reminants of rotting pumpkins. Yuck! They all love the pumpkin patch!

We weren't able to go to the Safety Town halloween event, as we are moving to another house soon, and had to get stuff done on that :-(. We were in Belize during our Community Halloween get together, and Nana and Papa were not up to taking you guys. So, this year, we only did Halloween on Halloween :-). Kaden was an Angry bird. Colin was a King Pig. (Both from the game "Angry Birds"). Katharine was Cinderella, and Victoria was a fairy :-). All were super cute! We went Trick or Treating around the neighborhood with Mackenzie Ridout and her family. The weather was perfect, and everyone had a great time. Victoria wasn't to interested until she discovered that it was candy that was being handed out! Then, she was all about it! Aunt Stephanie pushed her around in her little car and carried her up to the door. Yes, she has the life! We then went home and handed out candy to the remaining Trick or Treaters :-). They love handing out candy! Especially since we have this creepy bowl that has a motion activated skeleton hand that comes out and spooks people! Grammy got that for them! To funny! They were all very happy, and candied out!

Our First Chess Tournament

Colin and Kaden are in chess club at school, though they have never played before. They had their first tournament, and we were expecting them to do poorly :-). Jason even picked them up early because they have hip hop on Mondays as well. Kaden was upset to leave. On Friday, Kaden comes to the bus with a trophy, and Colin has a ribbon. Apparently, Kaden won 4th place in the tournament, even though he left early! Colin got an honorable mention! Chess club then wanted to advance Kaden to the next level. Kaden did not like it. He said he didn't like losing, and he missed Colin, so they let him go back. So proud of both of them! Look out Bobby Fisher!

First Field Trip to the Zoo!

Kaden and Colin had their first field trip to the Dallas Zoo, bus ride and all! I was really anxious about the bus ride all the way from Frisco to the Zoo! No car seats = major anxiety! Luckily, all made it safely to the zoo! I was the chaperone for Colin, Kaden, Ava, and Savannah. Daddy came, as well as Ava's Dad, and Savannah's Mom. We all had a great time! Giants of the Savanna was amazing! Colin and Kaden decided to ride home with us so they could get a milk shake :-). Just glad they didn't ride the bus back. The bus ride there was enough for me :-).

Kaden playing both sides!

Kaden, Colin, Katharine, and Victoria were playing in the sprinkler outside. They had little water guns. Kaden pulled Katharine aside, and told her that he was on her team. A few minutes later, he pulled Colin aside. Suddenly, Colin was running across the yard yelling, "Baby Kate! Baby Kate! Don't listen to Kaden! He said he was on your team, but he just told me that he's really on my team!" Oh my goodness! Kaden is 6 years old and all ready playing both sides! How does one know how to be diabolical at 6? Man, o man! What are we in for in the future!

Colin's an Angel

During car line today, Colin's teacher came out and told me that 3 little girls in Colin's class went up to Colin and stated, "Colin, you are an angel on Earth." So sweet! I so agree with them :-).

Six Flags!

We took Kaden, Colin, and Katharine to Six Flags with cousin Aidan. Nana was at home with Victoria. It was the coolest day of the week at 95! It was everyone's first time at Six Flags. We rode the pirate ship, twirling sombreo, tabagan ride, ferris wheel, little roller coasters, and the boys rode the Judge Roy Scream with Jason :-). It was great fun, and we can't wait to go back. . . when it's cooler!

Katharine's First Day of Pre K!

I was very nervous this morning. Katharine was upset last night, and saying that she did not want to go to school. Crying, the whole nine yards. Luckily, she was in much better spirits this morning! No problems with the uniform. For all the carrying on last night, she just walked right into class this morning! Not a single tear, though I had a few :-). So proud of her for being so brave!

After school, she reported that she liked her teacher and had fun. It looks like it's going to be a good school year!

Kaden and Colin's First day of 1st Grade!

Colin and Kaden had their first day of first Grade! Colin is in Mrs. Frazier's class, and Kaden is right next door in Mrs. Ward's class. They have recess and lunch together. They were both very excited and did not hesitate in going in their classrooms. So brave! I think it's harder on the parents right now. We both walked them to class, took pictures, and gave them each a high five:-) At the end of the day, they both reported that it was a fun and good day, and that they both liked their teachers. Katharine starts tomorrow, so we'll see if we are so fortunate!

Victoria's Bum Bum song

Victoria is quite the little dancer. Like her sister and brother, she love Hi-5. She also likes to dance to the music on the iPod. I had the Queen song "another one bites the dust" on my iPod, though it's the Glee show version. The sung opens up with, "Bum, bum, bum, bum, bum, bum, bum, bum". Victoria assumes they are talking about her bum! She automatically starts hitting her bum to the music and saying, "bum, bum, bum!" So stinkin cute! Love her! Love that she dances and hits her bum to the music :-).

Victoria's 2nd Birthday!

Happy Birthday to our sweet baby, Victoria! We went to the mall for lunch to celebrate and ride the carousel, just us girls. Jason and the boys are in Colorado camping. We had a great time at the mall, and Victoria enjoyed the carousel, twice :-). We went to Mattitos for dinner with Aunt Stephanie, and the girls were great. We then went across the street, and Aunt Stephanie treated them both to some candy at the candy shoppe :-). Then it was on to the fountain to throw some pennies. All in all, is was a great birthday. So blessed to have our special, sweet girl. Love her sweet kisses :-). She is talking much more now, and saying some 2 word sentences. She loves her baby doll and strolls her around. Katharine is being a good big sister, and trying to teach her things she feels is imperative to know :-).

The boys had a snow ball fight in the mountains of Colorado, even though it was 72 outside! They also got to cook some smores. Hoping they sleep in a little in the morning for Jason. They were up at 0550 this morning with the time change!

Kaden and Colin graduate Kindergarten!

I cannot believe it, but this school year is over. Colin and Kaden are on their way to First grade. It is amazing, how much they have learned this year. Special thanks to Mrs. Buffington (Kaden's teacher), and Ms. Ballesteros (Colin's teacher).

Katharine's play date and Book Fair

Me and Katharine had a play date with Joanne and Emma at Pump it Up. We haven't been there in a while, and I was so proud of Katharine! She was doing the obstacle course and slide all by herself! No help! She was a pro! So proud of her! She was proud too! She is growing up! Grew 3 inches this year! She was so happy and had such a great time during the play date. Emma came over to our house after :-)

Kaden and Colin had their book fair at school. I got to go and help them pick out a few books. Colin was not overly impressed. After some coaxing, he only bought a few books, and one was for Katharine :-). His favorite was a book about Storms. Kaden came into the library and wanted everything that wasn't tied down :-). Kidding. He ended up with 8 books, with 2 for Katharine. He had 2 Star Wars and 2 Scooby doo books. Very expensive boy :-). It was fun to visit them and spend time with them at school. Plus, I'm glad we have instilled in them a love of reading.

Katharine 4 year check up

Katharine had her 4 year check up. She is growing great! Sight and hearing are good! We had to get our 4 year immunizations, and that stunk! I held her during the shots, and she cried, but did not kick like she has in the past! She really was fine by the time we got her sucker! I took her for ice cream after :-). She is a big girl now!

The launch of Discovery, STS-133!

Discovery Launch!

Jason and I are in Florida with Kaden and Colin for the STS-133 launch of space shuttle Discovery! This has been a life long dream of mine, and I cannot believe that we all witnessed the launch up close and personal with congressional launch tickets from our Senator John Cornyn! There are no words!
NASA picked us up in the mall parking lot several hours prior to the launch. We made our way to Kennedy Space Center in time to see the Winnebago type trailer take the astronauts to the launch pad! We finally made it to the viewing site, and I was a little disappointed, as I was so hoping to be closer! We were still about 3 miles away. Still, thrilled to be there! Kaden and Colin did great, as they were distraced by their itouches. Sadly, the itouches batteries died about an hour prior to launch. At that time, they resorted to beating up on each other a little bit. Strange behavior for them. They are only recently becoming more aggressive with each other. Thank goodness, we did not have to throw them out in the swamp as alligator dinner, as we were saved by the launch!
The launch was postponed 3 minutes due to some sort of security issue. People were speculating that some goofball was out in his boat in the solid rocket booster water landing area. Goofy! At any rate, there was only 90 seconds left in the launch window when they restarted the clock! Whew!
Kaden and Colin wanted to take photos with our iphones while I did video, and Jason did camera. There are no words to describe the launch! It was very quiet. Viewers were quiet. It was like we were all in awe of the sight. We saw the plume of smoke for what seemed like several seconds before we heard the sounds of the launch. It was stunning. Speechless. Everyone was speechless. Then we heard the noise of the launch, heard that Discovery was clearing the tower, and then it was elation! Everyone whooping and clapping! So wonderful and stunningly beautiful. So amazing to witness Discovery propel herself into space. To witness people do what they dream. Breathtaking. And during that time, I was a 12 year old girl in elementary school, watching in awe.
Colin and Kaden said that it was "Awesome!" Their photos are fantastic! Kaden said he was so happy that my dream came true! It was amazing to share this with them. NASA says that the astronauts that will explore Mars are not engineers, or in college. They are in Kindergarten and first grade. Who knows? Maybe they will be Kaden or Colin or Katharine for that matter! I am so eternally grateful for the opportunity to witness a launch in person.
#1 on my bucket list: check :-) God speed Discovery!!!

Colin and Kaden's 6th Birthday party!

Colin and Kaden are 6! We had their birthday party at Sci Tech Discovery Center in Frisco. It was the Rocket themed party, where they conduct experiments using rockets, soda, and mentos :-). The kids all loved it! They had to guess which ingredient would cause the largest "explosion". In the end, it was the Mentos! Huge gush of soda! They were in awe! Nana, Papa, Grandpa Mark, Mimi, Aunt Mindy, Uncle Shawn, Aidan, Aunt Steph and Uncle John were all there to help us celebrate :-).

They wanted a Tom and Jerry themed party, and each had their own cake. We first sang Happy Birthday to Colin, and then to Kaden :-). There were kids every where! 26 kids total! Good grief! We then got to explore the exhibits at Sci Tech. Very cool! Kara Price came up to me later with tears in her eyes. Her son, Truman, is the now 4 year old ex 23 weeker, that has some impluse control issues. Kaden and Colin were told to lead the children out to Sci Tech. Kaden saw Truman, and told him that he could be the line leader. Kara was so touched by his kindness. I got tears too! As a parent, you just want to raise your kids to be compassionate, kind, individuals. I'm hoping we're on target. Kaden showed we are :-).

Happy, Happy Birthday to my amazing sons! You are both such Blessings in our lives! We love you more than you'll ever know. . .

Victoria's 18 month check up

Victoria had her 18 month check up today. She has only gained one pound and is 19lbs even. Dr. G says he is not worried about her, as the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. She is doing well, overall. We just need to work on her speaking. She is very vocal, but not very verbal :-). She usually grunts or screams and points at what she wants :-). Her receptive language is great, it's just her expressive we need to work on.

She is into everything! If it is not tied down, she is on it! None of my other children are climbers, but she makes up for them in spades :-). We cannot leave any chairs out, or she will be standing on top of the table in two shakes! She still enjoys taking a shower with Katharine, and is walking really well, even running! She is such a joy, but very opinionated. I love her little spontaneous displays of affection, when she comes over and hugs and kisses me :-). She, however, does not appreciate it so much from her siblings :-). Oh, she is also "dancing". So funny! However, she all ready has more rhythm than her father :-)

Katharine's Pinocchio performance

Katharine's Musical Arts Schoolhouse had their production of Pinocchio this morning! Katharine was a fairy. She was uber cute and did so well in the theatre portion of the show. She did well during the dance portion until the little boy bedside her starting crying. Then she pretty much stopped what she was doing and looked at him like, "what's the matter with you?" Overall, she really enjoyed it and was really excited that even Aunt Stephanie came to see her!

I am so proud of her! There was very little "stank eye" :-). It makes me a little sad because she will not be attending this school next year. We decided to put her in Legacy with her brothers. If she doesn't attend Legacy next year, she will have to be tested. I know she won't do well being tested with a stranger. I foresee a whole lot of "stank eye" :-) We will have to investigate other performance avenues for her. Overall, great performance from a girl named for Katharine Hepburn :-).

Girls Just Want to Have Fun and Kitty Litter

Last week, Katharine and I went to the mall. We went to Hallmark to get a card, and she decided she wanted to get her own card for her upcoming birthday. She chose a sweet 16 card that plays, "girls just want to have fun". She and Victoria open the card and dance all over the house to this song! Victoria does this squat dance, it's so funny! Very cute!

A little while later, I'm looking for Victoria and find her in the laundry room grabbing hand fulls of kitty litter, and throwing it and some kitty poop in the air! So gross! None of my others were ever interested in the kitty litter! Nasty, Victoria! Good grief! Though she is a cute dancer! :-)

Mommy, you look Hot!!

Oh my goodness! I took Kaden and Colin to the mall with me to run some errands. At one point, I took them potty, and Colin said that he really liked my boots. That they were pretty. Kaden then said, "Yeah Mommy. You look Hot!" Oh my goodness! Jason needs to stop saying that! I don't want Kaden to go to school and tell some little girl that she is hot! Good grief :-)