Happy Birthday Joshua!!!

Six years ago...on a Tuesday (the second day of school) I went into early labor...and before we knew it...Joshua arrived 4 weeks early. He gave us a scare in the hospital and spent 2 days in the NICU...but nothing has slowed him down since.

 

This was our family 6 years ago....

 

And now we have this grown up, full of spunk 6 year old. Joshua--you have brought so much joy and laughter to our family. You are full of life. You are full of noise and love and you are ALL boy!!!

We love you so much. Happy birthday to you!!!!

 

First Day Hooray!!!

After a very fun summer...it's time to head back to school. Our last year of having 3 at the same school!! 1st, 3rd and 5th. All are SO excited about their teachers and ready to head back.

 

Joshua in his chair...happy to be there! :)

 



Sophia and Mrs. Trevino...looking forward to a great year!

And where is the picture of Jake?? He was too cool to have his picture taken in the classroom. I was asked to leave. :( Very excited about his teacher Mrs. Hildebrand.

Thinking about the kids a lot as I work in a quiet house this morning. Hoping they are having a good day and that they are all smiles when I pick them up!

Birthday Celebration!!

Happy 6th Birthday to Joshua!!! We celebrated a few days early with a family birthday party. He chose an Army theme. We had a water balloon fight (a short one).

 

Presents...

 

 

And cake! We celebrated Brian's birthday too since his was earlier in August.

On Sunday we surprised the kids with a trip to the Tower of Americas. They have been wanting (and wanting...and wanting) to go. Especially Joshua. Side note...he's not upset in the picture...the sun was just really bright!!!

 

A birds eye view of the city....

 

Mike and the kids went to the outside viewing area. I chose to stay inside. :)

And afterwards the kids got giant Icees in cups shaped like the tower.

 

We had a great birthday celebration and last day of summer!!!

Annual Trip to the Beach...

Our 4th Annual trip to the beach with friends...and I think this was one of our best trips yet!!  We did all the "usual" things....like the dolphin watch boat. Some pirates attacked and we had to defend the boat!

 

Some people were less than thrilled with the pirates....

 

The best part is always dragging the nets and dumping what they catch into the touch tank. They pulled up several crabs, some different kinds of fish and some sting rays. They pull the sharp "stinger" out so the kids can pick them up.

 

Sophia holding a puffer fish.

The pirates always meet the boat back at the dock for some pictures. Joshua did not want to get anywhere near the pirates! :)

 

The same 2 guys are always running the boats. TJoe is the one who is on deck. Very interesting guy. He is missing one eye and one finger. Hmmm....

 

Mike took the boys fishing on morning. They didn't catch anything but I'm sure they were the cutest fishermen on the pier!!

 

 

The kids got to spend lots of time with friends!!! Playing tennis.....

Eating dinner together...

Checking out the sites...

Shark Week claimed a few more victims this year!

 

We spent a lot of time on the beach!! Lots of sand castles, boogie boarding and time with friends!!

 

Joshua and Hudson both have August birthdays. I know this picture is blurry...but the last night we surprised them with a cake for an early birthday celebration.

 

We had another lesson with the Sand Castle Man. He taught us how to build arches. Some of them were successful....but most fell.

These 3 girls are quite the trio. Friends since they were 2....and still going strong. We all hope they will stay friends for a long long time.

 The last night we stayed at the pool for a long time...but finally headed down to the beach for a campfire. The wind was really really strong, but the guys managed a fire inside the sand castles.

 

 

Everyone got some glow sticks and necklaces...

 

 

 We roasted marshmallows and the kids hunted for ghost crabs...and found 4. It was so windy we thought the rest of the crabs were probably blown away to some other beach!!!

This trip is always one of our favorites. And this year was really one of the best. Kids played so well together. They are all big enough to be helpful!! Each year it gets easier and easier. We were all so busy that packing and planning was pushed off until the last minute. It was more of a "throw some food and beach stuff into the car and head south" kind of deal. And it worked. 5 families with 12 kids total...quite a group but so much fun!! So thankful that we have such wonderful friends to spend time with!!