Easter Birthday

Happy 10th birthday, Benjamin!  What an amazingly talented and funny kid he is!  He has the best dreams and grand plans for life and I look forward to each new idea he comes up with.  When I asked him what kind of birthday he wanted (so that I had an idea of what kind of cake to do) he said that he wanted a Disney Infinity, Skylanders, or veterinary cake.  Hmmmm.  I'm not sure I got what he was looking for, but it worked out ok.  I had 2 Disney Infinity characters that I had saved from America for his birthday.  That is how I got away with calling this cake a Disney Infinity cake :)

 He enjoyed his cake and party.  We celebrated a day early because he wanted to have Easter as a separate day (but we saved a present for his "real" birthday anyways)

 Here is the birthday party crew on the way to play at the playground.

Jonathan fixed pizza...and again, it was delicious!

Easter morning.  

 Hudson's first Easter egg hunt.  It didn't take him long to figure out how to play the game.  He got a head start for the first 3 hunts and then we made him hang back with everyone else because he was finding the eggs to quickly :)  This picture cracked me up.  He was counting his eggs and telling me that he didn't have very many this time.

 My beautiful kiddos in their Easter outfits!

 One of our neighbors walked by while we were taking the pictures of the kids so I asked her to take one of our whole family.

 Selfies with Mommy :)

The kids painted some eggs and then we decided to paint our hands, too!

They are ready to go!  Lauren is so sweet trying to let Hudson know what is going on.  The other 3 were too excited.  He got a head start....they couldn't go until Hudson found the first egg, so they were cheering him on from the steps.

The hunt is on!

It makes me smile to see these two hunting eggs together.  Benjamin waited a long time for a brother :)

RUN!!!!

Trying to pass the time while Benjamin hid the eggs....and to keep little eyes from peeking too soon!

Not sure what he is saying here...giving hints? 

A little home school for Hudson.  He was working on the letter T.  He LOVES taxis so it was a perfect lesson.  Apparently, the taxi is supposed to be blue.

Finally got all my kiddos very first pictures together in frames.  The four on the left are one day old in the pic, the one on the right is 10 months old.  My sweet babies!

Also this weekend I went to the capital city to visit my friend in the hospital.  Her mom was having surgery and she didn't want to wait by herself.  On my way home I realized...OH NO! It's a holiday weekend. PEOPLE, PEOPLE EVERYWHERE!  I would have gone anyways, but I told Jonathan that next time I need to look at the calendar so that I am mentally prepared for the crowds.  This was ONE of FIVE lines that I waited in (or should I say herded through) to get a bus ticket home!

This little guy loves motorcycles!  He has been wearing a big motorcycle helmet around the house all day.  We used to have one before they changed the laws here.  Now we just have the helmet. :)

Happy 6th Birthday, Lauren! and more

Well, these two girls are officially in braces/appliances!  They were both so excited to get them on.  Regan had the appliance when she was Katherine's age and now her braces should only take about 18 months to correct her bite.  Katherine will need to wear hers for a longer time because it is helping her jaw.  Her bottom jaw is not growing at the same rate as her top (same thing Regan had)  I was a little skeptical when Regan was young about it, but it really did work!  Katherine really likes it, but her teeth have been sore.

 Just a little selfie while riding bikes outside!

 Hudson was so excited to go to the post office with Daddy.  It was his first trip and he came home so excited about this mysterious package that our other kids quickly informed him had lots of fun things inside for everyone.  Well, they were right!  What a fun box it was!

 Hudson got several cute wooden puzzles.  This one was his favorite.  After you get the final piece in, it makes a train engine sound.

 This moment was priceless and I wish I had it on video, but I had NO IDEA the kind of reaction she would give.  This package had her birthday gifts in it as well.  My friend had asked if it was ok to send her original iPhone as a gift...Lauren could listen to music or take pictures.  Sure.  No problem.  When she realized what it was, she screamed and then started crying because she was so happy.  It doesn't work as a phone, but she LOVES telling me that she has an iPhone ;)

 Benjamin got his birthday gifts as well.  He got some Tennessee clothes and this Book about Star Wars.  He was in his pj's during the gift opening and didn't want those pictures posted.

Regan got some cool art stuff.  She has been enjoying drawing at her desk.

We celebrated Lauren's birthday a few days early so that Regan and Chloe (Lauren's best friend) could both be able to be there.  It made for a late night decorating the cake, but I really liked how this one turned out.  I couldn't have done it without Jonathan's help!  He help me make things so that I could put it together.  

 I loved all of her expressions during the party.

I loved the purple stripe pattern of the cake inside.  It's so fun!

Lauren about to eat her cake!

 Oh, and Lauren informed everyone (in my family) what they needed to wear to the party....and they all listened!!  I couldn't believe she had Benjamin in his suit!  It's ok.  He has always loved wearing suits.

 After the party, I took the kids to the play place nearby.  It was a little crazy (busy) since it was a weekend, but still lots of fun.

 Then a final group shot before heading back home.

 Jonathan was super sweet to give me a morning to myself.  I got up and he said that he had homeschool today and I should go to Starbucks for some quiet time.  :)  I did enjoy my quiet time!

 Katherine decided that she wanted a hair cut.  I made her wait 2 weeks before letting her do it just to make sure she wasn't going to change her mind after she did it.

 My kids typically bring a crowd at the styling salon.  I'm not sure what all the other hairdressers were talking about, but they were fascinated by something....the blonde hair maybe?

 And here is the reveal!  The super cute, super fun, super short haircut!  I love it!

 She's so pretty!

 She wanted to prove that she could still pull it back if she got hot.  Cute little pigtails.  She said she felt like Kit Kittredge with the new hair cut.

 Before we left the States, we had some family pics made in Atlanta.  These were my 3 favorites. Me and my Sweetie...

 All of the cousins together....youngest is 1 yr and the oldest is 17yrs...

And then a picture with my brother and sister!

Back in the Swing of Things

 Jonathan took Regan out on a Daddy daughter date.  They enjoyed some good food and conversation.  :)

 My 5 year old, Lauren, had a school project due.  It turned into a family project.  These five year olds were asked to make 3D maps from their house to the school, mark the path, and label all the roads and buildings. It seemed a little difficult for the age, but the teachers did ask the parents to help out. HA!

 She was so proud of her model :)

 We have enjoyed some warmer weather outside and have been able to get a little P.E. in during the day.

 Yes, Hudson still is a HUGE fan of the selfie.

 We had saved some of his Christmas money for when we got back.  We knew that he would want a bike and that we could find one small enough here. Jonathan is so proud that he chose a Tennessee orange bike ;)  He's a smart boy.  He's gotten really good at it and asks every day to go out and ride.

 Benjamin woke up on Saturday morning and decided he wanted to surprise us with breakfast.  It wasn't a complete surprise since he had to ask for the pancake recipe, but breakfast was delicious!

Benjamin's masterpiece.  Looks like he will take after his Daddy :)