Month of May

Alot has gone on this past month. Sydney at her kindergarten graduation. (She is wearing pink).
Mason and his soccer team. They are awesome!!
Cole, Sydney, Brinnley, and Jake at the Aquarium. I dare you to touch the stingrays!!
Zeb, Eli, and Mason at their First Grade night program. Mason had a speaking part and did awesome!!
Ada and Jake at the aquarium.
Wow what a month this has been. Everyone is winding down for the summer. The kids had multiple programs and graduations. I am so glad for school to be out. I am done with homework and ready to hit the pool. Ada is healthy and is starting to crawl. Cole is doing well. My kids are growing up. I hate it. I want them to stay little. I just had another eye surgery. The doc had to reshape the eyelid and it was more extensive than I thought. So now I am swollen (again). I hate it, but what do you do.

OT and a Head Wound

I haven't posted in a while and a lot has happened. I got a phone call from Cole's preschool teacher. She wanted to set up a time to do his IEP. She also told me that the Occupational Therapist would be there and that he had his testing all complete. In short she told me that Cole now qualified for OT. Our prayers have been answered!! He will now be able to get OT more frequently starting next year. I have been taking him to Orem twice a month. He needs it, its just very expensive. This is such a blessing. I am so greatful that the Lord is mindful of Cole and his needs. Cole had the prayer in opening excercises in Primary on Sunday. We didn't help him, (but probably should have). He was not afraid at all. He walked right up to the pulpit and said, "my dad said I could, obey mom, my dad, thank you." then he sat down. The first councilor said Amen for him. It was hilarious. I was proud that he did it. He was not scared at all. But it was not a prayer! ha ha!! I can't believe that school is almost out. I am so greatful. I do not want to do anymore homework. I got a phone call from the school today telling me that Mason fell and hit the back of his head. They wanted me to come and look at it. When I got there Mason was very sad. He had a huge goose egg and it was bleeding, but I didn't think that it needed stitches. He is such a tender hearted kid. I asked him what had happened and he said another kid accidentally tripped him. (Come to find out they were rough housing and Mason fell over the other kid) Needless to say he did not need much persuasion when I asked him if he wanted to go home. LOL

Smorgasbord of Pictures

We spent one day of spring break at the zoo with my friend Amy and her kids. This was Ada's first time. The weather was perfect. We had a great time.

I dare say Ada had a great time!

Celebrating Easter morning. Happy Easter bro!
Easter outfits!
Cole, you sly ole dog you!
This is what Ada looks like every morning when she wakes up. She is always so happy!
(I have just been informed from my daughter Sydney that I have been on the computer forever. She says that I am going to turn into a grandma for being on the computer for so long!)

Going Private

Swimming lessons is a favorite at our house. Andy, Ada and I love to watch the other kids swim. We enrolled Cole this time and he has done very well, much to our surprise.
Sydney loves to swim. Lets just say she plays hard and has the coordination of her mother. Cole has surprised all of us. He stayed with his class the whole time and participated. He hardly got distracted at all and he gets braver and braver each time. It does my heart good.
Mason can now swim from one end of the pool to the other in the deep end. He gets better and better. It is fun for Andy and I to watch him doing something that he enjoys.

After much thought Andy and I have decided to make our blog private. So please send in your emails so we can add you to the list.

Just a Few Thoughts

After a chaotic morning of getting the kids off to school, Ada and I ran to Walmart to grab few things. I needed treats for the soccer game on Saturday, a birthday present for Mason's friend, and Easter basket "stuff". I was just checking out when I looked up and noticed the lady in the next line had a little girl in her cart with Down Syndrome. After I checked out I approached them. It turns out she is six years old and her name is Jodi too. She can talk and she sings Ada a sweet song. Then she asks if Ada can go home with her. The lady who is with her is not her mother but a neighbor who watches her while her mom works. The lady says that her mom and dad spent every minute they had working with her. This Jodi is the youngest in her family too, like Ada. We say our goodbyes and as I walk away I have mixed emotions. I feel empowered and guilty. Empowered to do more, to spend more time with Ada, playing and learning. I feel guilty because I don't feel like I have done all that I can. I feel like I have let cleaning the house, blogging, doing things for me take priority over Ada. Keeping in mind I have other children whose needs and wants need to be taken care of as well. I pray that the Lord will help me prioritize and help me stay motivated.

Las Vegas

Andy and I just got back from a weekend in Vegas. Andy's brother Sam, let us use their time share. THANKS SAM and EM! It was so nice. The weather was 80 degrees, we laid out by the pool and got sunburned. Okay let me clarify, Andy got sunburned. It's not his fault its mine. I am horrible at applying sunscreen. I don't smooth it around very well. Well lets just say I missed a huge spot on the left side of his back where he has some splotchy red spots. Funny, I recall the same thing happened on our honeymoon to Hawaii, in Lake Mead while we were dating, and at Aunt Kaylas a couple of times. Lets just say I am living up to my reputation at being the worst sunscreen applier ever. I hope that he can forgive me. It was a much needed break from reality. We vegged the weekend away! I have the most wonderful, patient husband in the world! Thanks Andy for a great weekend!!!

Can't Get Any Better Than This!

Maddie is amazing! It only took us four tries to finally get her picture coming down the slide!

These are some pictures of Sydney's birthday party that she spent with some cousins at Kangaroo Zoo.

Andy and I had the opportunity to go to Mason's school on Monday. He received an academic award. There was an assembly in which he was presented with this award. I was so proud of him. He is a very happy and talkative child, sometimes he talks too much in class. Earlier in the year Andy and I got a few phone calls from his teacher. She was asking for our help to find a way to not be so distracting in class. (I wonder where he gets that from?) Mason has done an amazing job. He quickly took responsibility by bringing notes home and having us sign them. His teacher said he is doing wonderful. He has found some self control. Despite all talking in class he has been able to keep up with his school work. He is very smart. What an accomplishment. Good job Mason!! Keep up the good work. Your dad and I are so proud of you!