Audrey's Dance Recital

Audrey took ballet and tap this year at a studio near our house. Doug and I were really proud of how well she did during her performance. She was so excited to go up on stage which was completely different from last year. It was nice to see her confidence shine through.

AWANA

I volunteered this year at AWANA which was a great experience. The kids enjoyed having me there and it was a lot of fun being there with them.

Ethan did an amazing job with his memory work this year. He finished his book, review scripture verses and extra credit book by February. Audrey finished her book and review scripture verses by May which was great for her, but Jacob was the one who knocked it out of the park. He finished his book, silver section and gold section. His teachers told me there has only been one other kid who finished all of those sections in one year. It was no small feat for him to complete. As we were getting close to the end he was losing hope, but I was cheered him on and he pressed forward to complete the book. For his final Gold section on his last night he had to say 75 scripture verses for memory. He didn't think he would be able to do it, but he did. He was so proud of himself and so was I.

This is our neighbor from across the street with Jacob.

Baseball Season

Baseball season was a lot of fun this year. We had the kids play for the Mascoutah Khoury League which is a great league for them to play in. The coaches were really good and it's in a small town near our house, so it has the small town feel with the people you meet. 

 Fredbird came out for picture day! He's very funny and had the kids laughing the whole time.

 Audrey wasn't normally dressed in curls for her games. It just so happened that she had her dance dress rehearsal the same day as a game. I think she really enjoyed looking like a princess while playing softball.

Ethan's game improved dramatically this year. He was one of the best players on the team. Right now he is all baseball all the time. He's practically memorized all the stats on his baseball cards and he has quite a few. He definitely knows all the players, who they play for and what position the play. 

Jacob's games were on Tuesday and Thursday nights. Ethan and Audrey would often get bored at the games and find a way to occupy themselves. They found dirt to be the best remedy for boredom and often required baths when we got home.

 They were so proud of their accumulation of dirt. This picture doesn't show it as well as it could, but they are covered from top to bottom. They spent quite a bit of time throwing the dirt up in the air so it could land on top of them.

Below was a typical scene from Audrey. I think her goal was to see how dirty she could get. It was trying on Doug's and my patience to watch, but she was having so much fun it didn't seem right to stop her from this simple enjoyment. And let's face it, it's way better than putting a phone in her face so she could play some games. 

CARDINAL'S KIDS CAMP

Jacob and Ethan went to a Cardinal's Kids Camp and guess who was there...Fredbird! How many kids get to get a picture with him twice in one year.

     

 Jacob worked so hard at baseball this year and it showed. Like Ethan, he improved dramatically from last year. We were very proud of him and loved seeing his determination to do well.

CARDINAL'S NIGHT AT BUSCH STADIUM

The Khoury League has a night at Busch Stadium each year. The kids got to walk around the perimeter of the field with their teams. However, since no one from Ethan's team showed up he walked with Jacob's team. Afterwards we had tickets to see them play the White Sox.

 

                         

Audrey's Birthday

Audrey turned 6 on May 2nd! She had been asking for a Hello Kitty birthday, so I did my best to deliver. I wasn't sure how I was going to pull everything off because we had so much going on, but Doug and I found a way to make her birthday as special as possible.

The rainbow on the Hello Kitty cake was a must because Audrey loves rainbows!

 The one thing she wanted for her birthday was Kaya. She is the Native American doll from American Girl. Audrey had been asking for Kaya since last fall so it was very special for her to finally get her for her birthday.

 After taking Audrey to the American Girl store we let her pick out a couple dresses. She loves dresses and so it was another birthday wish she had. At the mall they had an indoor Merry-go-round so rode that before heading to lunch at the Cheesecake Factory.

         

 When we got back from Chesterfield Mall in MO the neighborhood kids were coming home from school, so we invited them over to sing her happy birthday and have some cake. 

Overall it was a nice, quiet birthday with most of the day just being together as a family. I enjoy celebrating our birthdays like this once in a while and I think it's a good reminder to the kids that every birthday doesn't need to be a blow out with tons of kids and activities.

Happy Birthday to my sweet, strong willed, beautiful little girl. She challenges me in ways no one else could and I'm a better person and mom because of her. 

Sibling Record

I know it's probably no surprise that the last child learns the quickest. They do have the older siblings to learn from. However, Audrey truly amazed us this week. It started off on Sunday when a neighbor girl told Audrey she was ready to ride her bike without training wheels. When Doug came home on Monday he took her training wheels off and before it was time to come inside she was able to go a few feet on her own. When she got on her bike Tuesday she had a little help from the neighbor girl and then she was off. Then, yesterday, at Ethan's soccer practice, Jacob and Audrey brought their bikes to ride around the school and she was zooming around everywhere. I think the biggest surprise with all of this is she just got her new bike two weeks ago. She hardly ever rode her other bike, so, going to no training wheels so quickly is really amazing!

Having fun in Mom's closet!

I had just reorganized my closet and so Audrey had a newfound interest in my stuff. She is actually wearing one of my shirts and the bags are packed with shoes and a dress!

Blast Summer Camp - June 20th-23rd

The Simmons' were in town visiting for a day that week, so Drew and Shelby got to go to camp with the Edwards' and Jones'!

 Boys (left to right): Luke, Alex, Ethan, Drew, Jacob

Girls (left to right): Shelby and Audrey

This was that last time our kids got spend time with Luke, Drew and Shelby. They are now on their way back to McChord.

On Sunday the 26th, the kids performed during the Sunday service. Ethan got his finger stepped on before the picture was taken, so he didn't feel like smiling.

Signing Alex's cast!