Party, Party, Party!

September was a month for celebration.  A good friend of mine, Laura Moye, had her 6th baby!  Ethan has now joined this wonderful family.  In order to get everyone excited for his arrival, we had a little party in his honor.  This "li'l pumpkin" received some darling gifts and hopefully in return, the givers got to have some delicious food and fun conversation. 

 My favorite moment of the night was when Laura opened a handmade blanket from her 15 year old daughter, who had secretly made it at a friend's house weeks earlier.  Priceless!

Two weeks later, we had a birthday party for Lizzie.  August 31st was too soon for her to feel ready to invite friends over, so I gave her more time to get to know her class.  Then, I discovered that to have her teacher help her hand out invitations to the friends I didn't know, we would have to invite every girl in the class.  This took us up to 15 4-6 year olds.  Definitely, a larger group than I had mentally planned for.  But, we did it!  Thank heavens I can maneuver my way around pinterest and found some wonderful ideas and free printables.

 Lizzie wanted "target" cupcakes with arrows sticking out and the treats that the 3 brothers were always stealing in the movie.

 Treat bags with stickers, Merida necklace/lip gloss, gummy BEARS, and teddy grahams.

We first started having the girls decorate a personal CREST that they could take home.  Then we went outside to play some Highland Games...

 Who can throw the boulder (exercise ball) the farthest?

 Scottish Bulldog (basically sharks and minnows but on land)

 Everyone had a shot at archery

 Pepperoni pizza (Lizzie's favorite) and pop

 We had to sing to her and let her make a wish!

 The spanking machine.  Lizzie was brave to go through it 5 times!

 I love that Lizzie hugged her friends after opening their presents!

 These are the best brothers ever!  They let me dress them up in "kilts" and help me keep the chaos down to a minimum.

 "Feast your eyes!" - their favorite line from the entire movie!

30 minutes after Lizzie's party ended, we had Evan's party begin.  Evan had not had a birthday party since he was 8 years old and he really wanted one this year.  As I looked at the calendar, it was going to be the middle of November before we could have a free night to celebrate.  Again, it'd probably be pushed under the rug.  So, after some discussion, we invited the Beehives and Deacons over for cake and ice cream with 13 toppings to commemorate his 13 years on September 29th.  Allie Waris was already having her birthday party that night and so the beehives were busy, but with some compromising, they all came over to our house to celebrate their birthdays together!  Basically, the kids ate, played Ghosts in the Graveyard, Head Pimple, and a few other games, and then it was over.  So fun!  What a great group of teens!

The Fashion Show

Living in a small town with a only a JCPenneys and a Sears catalogue pick-up store, one of my favorite memories is writing down what we needed and what we wanted for school the next year.  We would then drive into Salt Lake City to shop for an entire weekend.  I'm sure my brothers and dad HATED it, but it was a highlight of my summer.

Now as an adult, buying clothing for my children, especially as they grow and grow at amazing rates of speed, is not nearly as fun, although we do have moments.  Shopping with the girls cracks me up!  I am lucky to have 3 boys born close together and then 2 girls, so that I can pass clothes down fairly easily.  I am also overwhelmingly blessed with friends and neighbors and even hairstylists who take pity on the size of my "nest" and donate their clothes to us.  Because of this, I don't have to buy much for the kids, EVER!  I've just recently had to start buying clothes for Braxton (32x34 or mens' Medium!  He's huge!), but even with him, my Dad has kept us comfortable with shirts that are cut a little too tight and shoes, ties, belts, etc. that he is done with.  Thanks, Dad!

Nevertheless, I do understand the joy and excitement of getting new clothes for the beginning of school. At my favorite 2nd hand store, Once Upon a Child, they had a clearance event where many items were $1.  So, I took the girls (Emma needed 2 pairs of pants and Lizzie knew that if she came along, she may end up getting a new item because I'm a softie.)  Carter was bored and tagged along, too.  We hit the jackpot.  I wish every item I bought was only $1, but they were pretty close.  The girls kept wanting to show their dad what they'd acquired, so we decided to have a fashion show before dinner.  They wrote up programs and even invited Braxton and Evan along.  Carter was in the show because he can't handle NOT being in the spotlight.  Here were some of our models and the outfits, they put together.  Notice the stances.  I have never taught them any of this!!!  My girls were born knowing how to do this!  I loved seeing each personality completely come out as they walked on "stage."

Walking with attitude down the catwalk.

Shaking it so we get the full effect!

This one shocked all of us and kept us laughing until our stomachs hurt.  Braxton was so embarrassed he had to leave the room!

I think we're going to have to make this an annual event!

The Court of Honor of 2012

 Because Steve was so proud of his boys for working so hard at scout camp and because we hadn't had a court of honor for a VERY long time, he wanted one ASAP and wanted to make it one they wouldn't forget.  Steve took the 150 pictures of the boys from scout camp and made a video for each family.  (It can be viewed on Steve's page on Facebook.) It was so nice to see each boy recognized for their efforts.  It was also exciting for me to see my son receive 14 merit badges that night!  We're on our way!

Kind of awkward standing and interpreting in ASL for my deaf friends as I am also up in front as the "mom".  I much prefer sitting in a chair to the side. 

The Mother's Pin

Labor Day at the Dunes!

When Steve asked me if I had any plans for us on Labor Day, I was brave enough to admit that I'd been wanting to go to the Dunes.  He actually said, "Let's go, then!"  The kids were so excited.  We even rounded up G'pa and G'ma Bird for a GORGEOUS day at the beach!  It had been over 5 years since we had visited last, 7 years for me.  We picked a perfect day to visit again!  The weather was warm, but not too hot and the water was cold, but bearable.

 Lizzie's been really practicing her name with lowercase letters and made her mark on the beach soon after we arrived.

 The grandparents enjoyed the breeze and people-watching.

Up the hill or "dune" and on the other side is a jump that 2 teenage boys had built up.  My kids couldn't get enough of it!  They jumped for over an hour!

Here's the master!  Check out the air he's catching!

Running down the dune is REALLY fun.

I found that you could actually BOUNCE down the hill.

Lizzie had so much fun, she ran up 1/2 way and ran down AGAIN!

If you follow a river that branches off Lake Michigan, you get to a spot with a sediment layer of clay in the wall of the river where it's receded.  A group of people is always gathered, rubbing it on their skin.  They claimed it would make your skin as smooth as a baby's bottom.  I don't know if it did that, but it did feel soft after washing it off.

Can't wait to go back next year!

Back to school

The 2 days before school started, we crammed as much in as we could...

Homemade snow cones. (Yum!)  

A fun Back To School Dinner outside on the deck,

 Banana Boats,

 And camping in the backyard.  Lizzie crashed on the couch during Father's blessings.  The quiet and peaceful feeling in the house must have taken over her. :)

 The next morning, we got up and went bowling.  Since Bolingbrook was already in school, we had the whole place to ourselves!

 Then we went straight over to Grandma and Grandpa's apartment complex pool (since Centennial Beach was closed already).  The kids had a great time this summer meeting new (and old) friends and hanging out.  This was a great amenity for us this summer as my kids are much more "fish" than "birds"!

 Even LIZZIE!  Look at her go!

 Emma seemed to make friends with the boys who were always doing tricks--like jumping over tubes.

 Lizzie improved on her cannonball skills.  Doesn't this picture put a smile on your face?! 

 That was followed by going out to lunch with Dad and then it was a few quick errands before practice and preparing backpacks for the next morning.

 Braxton's first day of High School.  Unbelievable!

 Evan was totally ready and much more relaxed than last year.

 The girls totally embarrassed him as they blew kisses and yelled out how much they would miss him and love him. 

My elementary school walkers + our neighbor, Sydney.

Emma has Mrs. Sharpe, who was actually Braxton's 2nd grade teacher!  She was known as Miss Bodie back then, though!  She's expecting baby #2 soon, so we'll have to see who else Emma will break in. :)

Carter was thrilled to be reunited with all of his friends again.  This young man is happiest when surrounded by people.  Carter is so funny.  He has assigned nick names to each and every one of his classmates.  It started with a cute girl that was being teased for being short. He defended her by saying, "She's not short; she's fun-sized!"  That has led to Mini, Pinky, Bite-size, Zoch, etc.

Carter has Mrs. Vasquez, who was Evan's 4th grade teacher.  I'm sure it'll be interesting for her to see the similarities and differences these sons of mine have.  Best of luck to her!

Lizzie got a new teacher to the school--Mrs. Gresk.  I absolutely LOVE her.  Lizzie only had a 1 hour orientation this day, so we filled it with things of her choice:

 Baking cookies & doing puzzles while they are in the oven,

 And Having a big playdate with her 2 closest friends.

At our Back to School dinner, I introduced our family's theme for the year, which is:

I have framed this and have it next to our front door.  Often, I say it to the kids as they are leaving the house.  As Steve and I took the kids out on their dates this year, we had all of them talk about their goals for this year, their fears, what they're excited about, etc.  Our older ones had some lofty things they wanted to accomplish and some valid anxieties.  So, I felt very impressed that this is what I wanted us to focus on.  I have to admit, I think I am using this modified scripture more than my kids, but that's OK.