So Long 5th Grade!

William finished another great school year!  This was his first full 'normal' year here and they put together the most amazing end of year program.  Each and every child was acknowledged for what they did well this year.  For these kiddos school doesn't come easily, but here they are able to learn to handle the challenges and celebrate the extra gifts that come along with their learning difference.  The speaker at the program was a graduate of the school.  She is now a registered nurse and talked about how the best thing she learned at Churchill was that she is smart.  My hope is that William knows just how smart he is!

I was shocked when William was called to the stage for something extra special - he logged the 12th highest number of minutes read this school year and earned this trophy.  All those hours spent with Greg Heffley paid off :)

He made so much progress with his tutorial teacher and we know he will continue to grow and thrive in 6th grade next year!

Happy 9th Birthday Jack!

 Nine.  My last baby turned nine this April.  I can't believe that this is his last year in single digits.  Every birthday I ask the boys what kind of cake.  Sometimes it's a cookie cake made to look exactly like the candle that he wanted on top.  I think I did a pretty good job delivering exactly what he was looking for.

This little man completed our family nine years ago.  He was the piece that we didn't even know was missing.  I love his big heart and his love for his brothers.  He is always happy to help out with anything I need and loves his mama like no other.  I will forever be grateful that God chose me to be his mama.

Happy Easter!

What a perfect holiday!  Aunt Carm and Uncle Mike usually host Easter at their house, but with her battle it made sense for us to take on the honor this year.  It was all around perfect.  We started it the day with our color coded easter egg hunt before prepping for our guests.  

Brian was thrilled to have people that wanted to eat his pulled pork - I hate smoked meat which he thinks I do just to spite him.  

The day included lots of fun family time.  Uncle Butch was ready with a card trick to teach Jack.  I can't get over that little grin on his face.

Jack was also thrilled to show off his piano abilities to anyone willing to come upstairs and listen.  

It's so fun having babies around again - G and Carter added a whole new layer to the fun.  G felt like a pretty big guy in the recliner until it reclined :)

I don't know how I got so lucky with these four guys!

The day was all around amazing.  It was so special to be able to celebrate with all of these people - I love these ladies more than they will every know! 

William is Eleven!

 Our man in middle turned 11 in April.  Again, the time just goes way to fast!  We celebrated 11 years of William with dinner at Dewey's.  Aunt Kathy was even in town for the occasion.  

After dinner we dropped him off for a scout meeting before having cake afterwards.  This guy brings to much laughter and joy to our family.  We couldn't imagine life without him in it - it might be less chaotic, but it would also be a lot less fun!

Strings Concert

 Jack has fallen in love with music this year.  He was so proud to show off his skills with a strings concert at school.  He did such a great job!   There are some things at school that are tough for Jack to navigate.  I love that the district builds this into their school day.  It truly gives him a chance to shine - and everyone should have  a chance to shine!

 Between violin and piano, it is very clear that Jack has some musical talent and we can't wait to see him grow.

Grand Day

 

One of my favorite things at William's school is grand day.  We are so excited that this fabulous tradition was able to return this year.  Nonna, nonno, and Grandpa Jack were able to learn more about dyslexia from an amazing speaker.  William was able to show off his school while giving them a tour and they were all able to enjoy lunch together.  Pretty perfect day!

Visiting Aunt Carm

 

Aunt Carm is one of the very strongest people we know.  She has fought cancer with such grace and grit. We all stopped by for a quick visit while she recovered from surgery.  Jack put on a piano concert and Max gave us the biggest smile ever.  

We all knew Max was officially taller than Aunt Carm, but we needed some photographic proof of just how much taller.  He just keeps on growing! We are all so lucky to have this amazing lady in our lives!

This is 14

 Wow.  How is my baby boy 14?  I swear we were just bringing him home from the hospital.  Years ago I was complaining to a mom friend that Max is up at the crack of dawn every day.  She has four boys and promised me that before I know it I would need to drag Max from bed.  I didn't believe her at the time, but wow as she right.  Max would sleep until noon each day if left to his own devices.

He loves  playing video games with his friends.  He enjoys his time with boy scout and has attended a couple venturing activities that he loved.  He impresses us with his saxophone and always beats dad at chess.  I swear the child survives on goldfish alone and he is growing like crazy!  Even if I do wish time would slow down, it is pretty amazing to watch the young man he is growing into.

Max and his Sax

 

Max has completely fallen in love with the saxophone.  He has really taken to it - he was invited to the all district honor band this winter!  

We all thoroughly enjoyed the concert.  Watching Max play is one of my very favorite things!

Merry Christmas!

It was our turn to host Christmas Eve this year and what a wonderful evening it was.  The weather was crazy warm and we were able to open the windows and enjoy the screened porch. 

This guy still believes with all his heart.  He was so excited about the idea that Santa might come on Christmas Eve.  He asked Santa for a Nintendo Switch this year.  He thought that would be a good way to save mom and dad money, you know since the elves would make the Switch and we would only need to buy a game :)

These two were super sweet and humored mom with pictures, even if they recognize someone. 

We are so incredibly lucky!

The little guys were up at 4am.  The teen was not thrilled to get up at 6am.  I love this yearly picture of the boys on the steps.

Lots of fun opepening presents after singingn hpapy birthday to baby Jesus.  We even got a smile from Max!  Christmas Miracle!

The Monkey Farts bath bomb kit was a quite the gift.  Had us all laughing.  We wrapped up the day with a quite dinner with Nonna and Nonno and a lunch with Grandma and Grandpa on Monday.  Too bad mom didn't take any pictures!

Christmas Preperations

 
As in years past Elfie and the Christmas Calendar returned.  The boys love seeing where Elfie hides each day.  It has been fun now that Max is older because he gets in on the Elfie hiding side of things.

Apparently a drought about 10 years ago led to a tree shortage this year.  We were able to find a pretty, but slightly Charlie Brownlike tree.  William thought it was pretty crazy that he cold lift it over his head.  Jack thought it was pretty funny too :)

Lots of lights, tons of meaningful ornaments, and a few stands of beaded garland made for a passable tree.

Life was pretty crazy the two weeks before Christmas - isn't it always?  I'm so grateful for friends that look out for us and send random cookies to brighten our day when we really needed it.

It was determined that Santa is over chocolate chip cookies so the boys decided oreo balls would be a better option.  I'm happy to say that a couple even lasted long enough for Santa to enjoy them on Christmas Eve.