Birthday Boy Part 1

Elisha's birthday is apparently a popular day. At his school there are two other girls that also celebrated a birthday on Thursday. Crazy huh?

There they are, the birthday chums. One turned sixteen, one eight and one six.

Here he is showing off his Happy Birthday ring his teacher gave him. Again I attempted to bring the ring to the focus and fade him out, but again, I'm just not that good at that.

Remember my attempt at making a cupcake cake for Bethany's birthday? Well I didn't do it again. This one is courtesy of Safeway.

Now remember I said Elisha's birthday is apparently on a popular day? In addition to sharing a birthday with the two girls at his school, he also shares a birthday with his Grandma Yvonne. AND his cousin Simon was born the same day and Michelle's dad too (but we don't know Michelle's dad IRL). Crazy, crazy, crazy.

Three generations. Uh, but only two of them were born on the same day (so don't get confused here!).

Hope your day was a good one, my boy!

Eight

He's eight years old today.

Son, where has the time gone? While I sit here and wonder why you're growing up so fast, I can't help but think that in some small way I don't mind. I am so proud of who you are becoming. You are beginning to recognize that with hard work and practice you can get good at whatever you put your mind to. You truly care for other people, and that's becoming more and more rare in this day and age. Your sense of humor has really come out this past year and you are a funny boy. I love the relationship we have right now and I hope we will always be able to talk like we do now.

Eight. EIGHT! I can't believe you're eight. But I'm proud of what you've accomplished in these eight years. Don't grow up too much faster though. I want you around for a while longer.

Random Dozen

I stumbled upon this meme on another blog I follow and thought I'd join in today!




1. Have you ever fired a gun or shot a bow and arrow?

Yes, I've fired a gun a couple of times when my dad took me out to target practice with him. I wasn't that good at it. But I've never shot a bow and arrow, unless you count the ones my cousins and I made with string and sticks as a kid.

2. Do you know where your childhood best friends are?

Nope, it's unfortunate but I'm not really sure. This is where having a Facebook account would probably come in handy, but I don't need one more addiction.

3. Do you usually arrive early, late, or on time?

On time or a little bit after. I used to always be on time but then I'm a major procrastinator and it's stumbled into what time I arrive too. I'm working on that though so generally I get there right on time (or so I'd like to think).

4. Are you more of a New York or California type?

Don't really know the difference but even though I live in California I don't really think I would consider myself a "California type". Since both revolve around more big city life and I'm not a fan of big cities I'd have to say neither. I just fit into my own mold.

5. Do you have a special ring tone?

Ummm... if I had a cell phone I would.

6. What is your favorite type of chip?

Ruffles Cheddar & Sour Cream

7. Best comedy you've ever seen is ....

Uh... I don't really watch TV anymore but I guess my favorite one is Home Improvement. We own seasons 1, 3, 4, and 6.

8. Have you ever cut your own hair? To quote Dr. Phil, "How'd that work for ya?"

Yeah, once I decided I'd cut off all the split ends. I didn't realize that I was making it all uneven until someone pointed it out. I'd cut it myself all the time if I could see it because I don't really like having to bother to go somewhere to get it done. I cut everyone else's hair in our family if we're short on cash and Yohn likes me to do his all the time.

9. If you were going to have an extreme makeover, would you rather it be about your house or your personal self?

Call me lame, but I'm not into makeovers. So I'd probably just say no thanks, please give it to my friend who would enjoy it so much more than me.

10. Are you allergic to anything?

Dust. It makes my skin red and itchy until I wash it off. I hate dusting. It also makes my asthma flare up.

11. Why is it so hard to change?

Because I like things just the way they are. Well, all except the parts that God wants to change in me. Those parts I desire to change but struggle. Why is that anyways? I just don't know.

12. One last question dedicated to February love: CS Lewis said, "To love is to be vulnerable." Please share one example of that assertion or share any thought you'd like to about this topic.

I totally agree. To love and be loved is to open up yourself and share parts of you that no one else knows about. It requires a trust much deeper than what we've known before. You're revealing yourself and asking for the other person to not use it to damage you later.

Wanna join in? Just click the picture for Random Dozen above and to copy the questions and link up.

National Pancake Day

Did you know that today was National Pancake Day?

Did you also know that IHOP gives out free pancakes on National Pancake Day every year?

Yep, they do. We found out last year and went and because Yohn had to work last year when we went, he insisted we go again this year. The kids, of course, did not object to this a bit so we got up a little earlier than usual and had a free pancake breakfast courtesy of IHOP.

And since IHOP was in such a giving mood we decided to donate a little money to the Children's Miracle Network too, since ya know that's what the goal is by giving away the free pancakes in the first place. (Nice face, son)

This was supposed to be one of those photos where the pancake was the focus and I faded into the background but it's not because #1 I was't behind the camera and #2 I'm not really that skilled at those kind of photos so it probably would have looked just like this anyways (ya know, minus me and all).

And I just had to throw this pic in too. This was the sunrise this morning as we were leaving the house. It's pretty huh? But you know what they say about a red sky in the morning. All we got today was rain, rain, rain.

This is What We Do When...

...one or more of the kids is busy learning fundamentals at practice :

1. Play DS while laying in grass (Elisha also found an old friend from last year who is the sibling of one of Bethany's teammates and together they tortured his other sister)

2. Photograph the setting sun (can you guess which one of us would be doing that?)

3. Gather sticks for a fire (cuz' we were all so very cold!)

4. Play with field equipment we probably shouldn't be playing with in an attempt to put out the above (pretend) fire

5. Volunteer to help out (this is more Yohn's thing as more of the dads are on the field and I'd rather just stand around taking pictures of him)

Build A Bear

We have a little tradition we started in 2007. The Saturday closest to Valentine's day (but not after it) we take the kids to Build A Bear.

Now three years ago they got to pick out and stuff these bears. But since I am not going to buy them a new bear each year and accessories we just bring them back each year for new clothes....

...and "baths"...

....and any necessary repairs. Bethany's stitching came undone on the back of hers so we asked if they wouldn't mind fixing her for us.

Then they have fun picking out new items for their bears. This year was the fourth year we have gone so Teddy and Princess have a decent sized wardrobe now and can be seen sporting many different styles.

This year Elisha opted for the "rocker" look for his bear. And Bethany chose baby items, including bear sized diapers with holes in the back for the tail.

We ran into someone Yohn knew after we left so while he chatted, I took pictures of the kids in front of this fountain. I think I may be visiting this fountain again for some photos. I really like how the background looks.

Class Valentine's Parties

As some of you already know, I work at my kids' school so I have the opportunity to take pictures in the classrooms whenever I want to (almost). Since Valentine's Day fell on a Sunday this year they celebrated Valentines on Friday instead.

Yohn bought Bethany a pink rose and a balloon and we special delivered them to her classroom. She really loves flowers so this was definitely a special treat for her.

Jewell and Bethany are in the same class so we couldn't leave her out. We brought her a balloon and some cookies to show her she's special to us too!

Obviously Elisha would not be impressed by flowers, so we thought a video game might make him feel like he got an "equal" present to that of his sister's. (I gotta train Yohn on how to use the automatic on the camera so the pictures will be in focus!)

He just had to show off his goodies!

Harmony's birthday is on Valentine's Day. We bought her a special balloon too, but her mom and dad sent eight balloon in honor of her upcoming 8th birthday.

Kids and class parties, I'm gonna miss this one day when they are all grown and have moved on.

I'm Baaaacccckkkk!

Yep, I got my computer back yesterday, but it was family night last night so I chose not to obsess over something I already have problems obsessing over. Soooo... Later on tonight I should be posting again, but I thought I'd just let you know that I missed you blogging buddies and I have returned to our little (or rather huge!) blogging world! Yay!

Wanna Read Something Good?

Yes, my computer is still out of commission so I'm doing a "filler" post as I don't have a ton of time and no access to my pictures *sniff, sniff*.

No, I am not being paid to do a book review or recommendation.

I read this book recently:

...in three days actually. I couldn't put it down. I love fiction though, so that's really not a long shot for me. But why I am recommending it is because I really think it paints a good picture of why we should support our troops in Iraq and Afganistan, no matter what our opinions of the war may be. If you do choose to read it though, keep some tissues nearby - don't say I didn't warn ya!

It Crashed

So in case any of you in bloggy world have been wondering why I have not visited the past few days I just wanted to let you know that my computer decided to crash completely on Thursday morning. Yeah, that's nice. Luckily we have a nice guy in our church who can fix such things and says it's not too bad and he can get it up and running again. Sooo... in a few days I should be back again!

Until then, have fun my friends!

Pretend That You Saw a Panda in a Tree

"Hey Mama! Pretend you looked up and saw a panda in a tree."

Apparently that's how pandas look way up in those trees.

Then her brother had to climb up and play along. Can you tell the baby is hungry?

And of course you know I had to try to get a few smiling photos while they were perched up in that tree. I wouldn't be me if I hadn't.

An Old Dog

You can't teach an old dog new tricks...

but you can chase him all over the yard and have a blast doing it!

Tax Return

We got our taxes back today! Yay! Let me just tell ya though, God's timing is always perfect on these things. See this guy:

Not that good looking kid but the animal that belongs to him. Well he got really, really sick and the only reason the vet saw him is if we paid the whole thing when our taxes came back. Let me just tell you it was a pretty penny too! The things we'll do for the ones we love and by that I mean my kid, because as much I as love that cat, I never expected spending money like that on him. But one look at that boy when he's all distraught because his kitty's on the brink of death and you do what you can. Actually we did prepare him that he just might have to say good-bye if it cost too much more, but thankfully he's bouncing back nicely.

We did treat the kids to a lunch and a movie today too! But I think Bethany should come with a warning label for those few times when I forget that mixing an already hyper 6 year old with extra sugar in a quiet movie theatre is just asking for her to bounce all over the place, re-position herself several times, attempt to swing from the nearby railing, and swing her feet around erratically. Yep, they should put warning labels on kids like that. But just in case you wanted to know, Toothfairy is a funny movie and worth seeing, but I think older kids, like 8 and up, would enjoy it more. Elisha loved it and Bethany, well, when she sat still long enough to know what was going on, seemed to like it too.

The following is a joke Bethany made up today while we were waiting for our meal at Mimi's:

What did the chicken say to the cow?

You're too big for me to eat so I'm just going to run away screaming!

The mind of a six year old. Sometimes you just can't help but laugh.

Clouds

I'm beginning to notice that I really enjoy looking at the clouds. Well, not the monster storm clouds, but the fluffy white ones.

I'm also beginning to notice that they don't photograph so easily.

Or at least, I don't have the knowledge of how to photograph them so well.

Still, I like to try. Remember this picture from our Oregon vacation last year? It's one of my favorites.

"...and then shall they see the Son of Man
coming in the clouds with great power and glory."

Mark 13:26

I Almost Forgot

A few weeks ago, Bethany was named Student of the Month (for her class) for the month of December.

She also got December perfect attendance.

Way to go Baby Girl!

Elisha got perfect attendance for the months of November and December.

Told ya I'd post this picture, Sandy, because I don't think it turned out too bad at all.