Just like the big kids!

Matthew always wants to be just like his brothers. It's been bothering him that he can't read like them, ride bikes like them, etc. Well, we fixed the bike problem. Once I got him over his fear of riding in the road, he took off like a pro.

I had video of better riding skills, but I loved the little smile at the end of this one. I didn't have the camera out when he would fall, then jump up and come running and squealing toward me because he was so excited. It was so cute because he was proud of himself.

Deja vu? Zack just happened to be wearing the same shirt when he learned to ride a bike. Maybe the shirt has super powers!

First Communion

On May 1st, Alex celebrated his First Communion. He looked so handsome in his little suit. It wasn't quite the production to get the outfit ready as it was for Rachel, but I still loved seeing him all dressed up.

With his godmommy, Aunt Tara

UVA with Abby and Matt

My friend from college, Abby, wanted to meet up in Charlottesville to run the 1/2 marathon with Dave. So, we headed down for a couple days to meet up with them. It was great to see them and UVA. It felt so nice we even looked a little at real estate booklets.

Here we are bright and early preparing to cheer Abby and Dave on as they pass 1 mile into the race.

Then, the kids and I walked 1 mile to the finish and met up with the jungle gym, um...Matt. He provided great entertainment for my kids by swinging them around, tickling them, putting them on his shoulders and playing tag with the others. The kids absolutely adored him, but they wouldn't leave him alone all day. I'm sure Matt enjoyed it but was glad to see us go.

Apparently the course was super hilly, so Dave and Abby were both happy with their performance. It was fun to be there and cheer them on.

We played football and threw a frisbee on the lawn, had some ice cream on the corner and bought some UVA merchandise at the bookstore. It was nice to relive the glory days. Here the kids are posing in front of the Rotunda.

Doyle's Visit

We were blessed to have Alice and her 4 youngest girls come visit with us for a couple weeks. We really loved having them around to go to celebrate Rachel's birthday, Easter, and just everyday events like soccer games. Rachel particularly loved having girls around to play with. It was fun! Here are just a few pictures of our time together.

Matthew, Zack, Sophie and Ella dye eggs

Easter group pic

Matthew and Sophie

Rachel takes Sophie for a ride

Grace, Mia and Ella on a cannon at the Manassas Battlefield

Matthew beats Alice in a race. He still talks about how is faster than Aunt Alice.

Ten??? Really?

I cannot believe that I have been a parent for 10 years. I still get flashes of disbelief that I am mature enough to be responsible for these children. It's been such an unbelievable ride, and it's probably going to get bumpier with a "tween" as she so often likes to remind me that she has become at 10.

Having the 3 boys, I'm so thankful to have a daughter. She is such a strong and confident person. She is so talented in ways that are so different from her brothers, and she's just happy with the person that she is. I love it! She sang a solo at church for Easter. I was so impressed and proud of her for being able to sing strong and confidently with 1500 people there. I was nervous, but she did great!

I had decided years ago when Rachel wanted her ears pierced that she could get it done for her 10th birthday. That way she would be old enough to decide for herself and do all the work to keep them clean. She has been counting down the days until her 10th birthday for a couple years now, so she was super excited. It was fun to have her Aunt Alice and cousins here to go with her.

Looking very nervous

Ouch!

Pretty blue flowers

One example of Rachel's great heart is this sweet letter I found just written on the board waiting for Zack to find. Makes a mom proud!

Catching up...

I have been a total slacker on blogging, but I wanted to blog some of the stuff that happened. So, I decided that since I have a little time, I will go back and do some of the old stuff. I'm going to post-date everything, so I'll have a new post every couple days for a few days anyway.

April Fool's Day

Now, I'm not a big April Fool's Day person. I never really think of anything to do. When I was 12, I told everyone at school that my mom had had her baby, and it was a girl. I had everyone convinced except my teacher. That was kind of fun! But, I never really try to get my kids with anything other than the lame, "your shoe's untied."

But, this year Uncle Chris was at our house, and not surprisingly, he does like April Fool's Day. This year he wanted to Saran Wrap our kids in their rooms, so at a very late hour, we were searching for a solution to getting the Saran Wrap up.

It didn't have quite the effect that we would have liked. Alex gets up first, which is unfortunate, because when Zack gets up, it is often a mad dash to the bathroom. So, he might have just ran into it. Of course, he might have had an accident on the floor and been seriously devastated by it. But, that would have been a much more successful prank.

Chris also put their toothbrushes in ice. This one was funny. Matthew was very upset about this. I think he was crying. That's pretty standard for a visit with Uncle Chris. At least one of my kids usually ends up in tears.

8 years ago today...

My little Alex was born after way too long a labor. Dave was very glad that Alex was a boy because he really wanted a son and wanted to pressure removed early. Little did we know that making boys was not a problem for us!

Alex is a personality of extremes. When he's excited about something, he is really into it and will push himself, work hard and get a lot out of th

e experience. He loves football and is always looking for an opportunity to play. He has done quite well in his flag football season, and it's been fun watching him play.

Another example is his running. He is just fast (like Dave) and determined. Yesterday the kids ran the Race for Education at school. They run around a 1/4 mile lap as many times as they can in 1 hour. My goal was to run with him. Dave encouraged me with, "You're going to get your butt kicked." Well, he was right. I couldn't even keep up with his speed and then his endurance proved to strong for me, too. He was shooting for 20 laps (5 miles), but he just couldn't quite get it in time and got cut off at 19. But, he was pushing hard at the end. I noticed at the end that he had blood running all down his leg. Apparently he had fallen and skinned his knee, but it didn't stop him at all. (In a side note, Rachel and Zack did super well too. I was so impressed by all 3 of the kids. They were determined and pushed themselves beyond what many of the other kids did.)

In contrast with this positive side of Alex, if he isn't into something, it is like pulling teeth. He just stands his ground and fights it every step of the way. It can be infuriating, but I think it will help him stand true to his morals as he gets older. And, that makes me feel good as a mother.

I love my little man. I cannot believe how fast he is growing up.