We had a very QUICK but great visit with Aunt Sarah, Uncle Jared, Ella and Lainey! This visit was extra special because it could be the last time we see them for many years since they are moving overseas. We are sad but excited about the opportunity for them!

We only had a day but we made the most of it. After a relaxing morning, well, as relaxing with 4 kids in the house as you can get, we went to Mellow Mushroom for lunch. After we headed home... was a beautiful day and so the kids had a great time playing outside, and we enjoyed the back porch. Even Jared and TJ managed to come up with some crazy game to play and entertained themselves with kids toys for a few hours. :)

After Lainey's nap, a little Wii Dance 2, and feeding the kids, my sweet mom came and stayed home with the kids so Sarah, Jared, TJ, and I could go enjoy dinner at Bummz alone. It was great!

Funny story... Karoline, Ella, and Lainey were all sleeping in Karoline's room. I warned Karoline NOT to get out of bed because she would wake up Lainey. So mom said while we were gone she heard Ella at the top of the stairs. She asked Ella what she needed and she said Karoline needed to go to the bathroom but was not allowed to get up. Smart girl. She knew she would get in trouble so she sent Ella :) Mom said it was so funny.

Here are some pictures... Just a few :)

Life At 5!

Its hard to believe my little girl has been 16, I mean 5, for a little over a week! She is such a joy! So in honor of her 5th birthday here are 5 things that just AMAZE me about my little girl...

1) Her Heart- She is such a little encourager always saying how much she loves us, her brother, and her friends. She gives complements all the time and she just loves to encourage other people!

2) Her Artistic Eye- Karoline is quite the little artist. She LOVES to draw, color, paint... all day long! She is not big on coloring books... just plain computer paper. Gives her more room for her imagination to run wild. It amazes me how she can draw things I probably could not even draw. Her favorite center at school is the writing center so she can draw and write.

3) How Many Times A Day She Can Change Clothes- I know this is not exactly sentimental but seriously... this child holds the record for how many different wardrobe changes can take place in one day! I look at this as a talent :) and more laundry for me!

4) Her Love For Her Church- Karoline gets SO excited about church on Sundays! When she gets to stay both services because me and my mom are serving she gets SO excited. She loves learning about God, playing with her friends and helping out with tear down. I am so thankful for her love for church and learning about God.

5) She Hugs and Kisses- Karoline LOVES to hug, snuggle, kiss... she is so sweet and wants everyone to know they are well loved. I love looking in the back of the car to see she has grabbed Anderson's hand to hold it. I treasure each spontaneous hug and kiss that I get throughout the day!

I love you my Karoline! I am so thankful God blessed me with the opportunity to be your mommy and love her to pieces each and every day! It completely scares me to death that in another 5 years you will be 10 years old! Stop growing up! Haha... You will always be my baby girl and my best friend!

Here are some pictures from her actual birthday opening her family gifts.






Can I just say that the above gift was the best $14.00 I have spent in a while :) Karoline just LOVES playing "Jewelry show" with this kit and Anderson gets into it with her. They are so funny! We were playing yesterday and I was in a hurry to get ready for dinner with my girlfriends but I had to "buy" some jewelry first. I told Karoline I could only buy 2 things because I didn't have any money. She said "You don't need money, you just need a card."... haha if it were only that easy!

The Royal Princess Party

We really enjoyed having Karoline's sweet friends over to celebrate her 5th birthday! I still cannot believe my BABY is 5 years old! I told her since she was 5 to pick 5 friends and we had a great time. The girls did a small craft, read a story, and DANCED to the Wii Dance 2! That was SO fun to watch! The ROYAL menu was princess PB&J, crackers, cheese sticks, fruit, and of course Cinderella cake! Her friends were so sweet and have her lots of fun gifts. We are thankful God has provided Karoline with such sweet friends!

Our Princess

We started out with a small craft... making a castle!

Our friend Alice made a precious Cinderella cake!

Girls ready to eat!

I love Rose... she is so funny! She thought putting her crown pb&j on

her head would be a good idea! She is our comedian!

Karoline joined in on the fun...

Rose, Abby, Karoline, Alli, Riley, and Allie

In the princess castle tent ready to listen to a Cinderella story.

CAKE TIME!

Time to DANCE!

Birthday Weekend Begins At School...

Karoline was excited that it was her special day to celebrate at school! She and Dr. Suess were both celebrated today. The children ate green eggs, ham and cupcakes! It was fun and her friends enjoyed the cupcakes and juice boxes. I was glad TJ and I both got to go celebrate with her at school!

Whoops...

Oh well...

Karoline's class

Green eggs, ham, and a cupcake!

So excited Daddy got to come celebrate too!

Mrs. Benson and Miss Suzanne

Dr. Suess Week

Karoline's class dressed up on Tuesday as "What do you want to be when you grow up" day... They read Dr. Suess's Oh The Places You'll Go. Karoline wanted to be a Jewelry Lady... she also told me she was going to be a ballerina, a chef, and a doctor and in her words she said "I am going to be SO busy, because I want 4 kids too." Then I asked "who in the world is going to clean your house?" Karoline said "My husband can. He's going to be the BEST".... I hope so dear. We are already praying for him!

Wacky Tacky Day...

This picture ...well... can explain what kind of morning we had.

Karoline was so excited, carefully planned her outfit and hair. Anderson had a 30 minute meltdown. Two different color shoes, closes not put on correctly, and gel in his hair was enough to make him CRAZY! He even cried through me doing Karoline's hair. He didn't like it... BUT once he got to school he figured out that I was not just being a mean mom and it REALLY was Wacky Tacky Day! Haha...

Playing Together

As they get older they become more alike. Anderson is still taking a nap but a later nap so they get to play for an hour or two after school and lunch. They have really enjoyed playing together and letting their imaginations run wild. They get along well (most of the time) and Karoline is usually trying to get him to dress up according to what adventure she wants to be on for the day... he usually goes right along. I'm loving this and pray they will always love and appreciate what they have in each other!

Never fear... Superman and Superwoman are HERE!

Trying to fly...

On this day Karoline wanted to have a Hawaiian Hula Party...

Spring is near...we can feel it... we can see it!!!!