Life with 4 Boys

Life in iPhone Pictures - Venice

2012-01-18T09:35:00.000-06:00

Straight from Nate

2012-01-17T22:52:00.000-06:00

Nate calls it like he sees it. I picked him up in the carpool line one day, without makeup on. He hops in the car and does not greet me. Instead, I get, "Did you not put makeup on today?" Nice.

‎"Nate, you really did a great job on your report card. There is only one area where you could improve." His

reply, "I wasn't even trying my hardest!"

My sweet Nate LOVES my tuna casserole He ate multiple helpings and then told me that it is so good that I

should put up a stand and sell it. I love my boy.

My sweet Nate does not like Chick-fil-A. Crazy, I know. He explained to me, "I like the chicken, just not the

aftertaste."

SOME of us in this family have been praying for a baby girl from China. Before prayers tonight, Nate wanted

to know why she had to come from China. I told him that she didn't and asked him where he thinks she should

come from. He thought Mexico. I told him that Mexico isn't an easy country to adopt from, so he thought we

should adopt from here or from...where is Mrs. Logsdon from - Oklahoma.

Life in iPhone Pictures - More Italy (Florence)

2012-01-17T22:23:00.001-06:00

Pictures from the top

Train station

Straight from Nate

2011-11-15T21:44:00.001-06:00

Nate and Cade spent a couple of nights with Grammy and Granddad. Grammy sent me a Nate quote.

Tonight before dinner Nate raised his shirt, pinched the skin around his belly button and asked, "Grammy, can I have one of those little donuts with the white stuff on top? I only have one percent flab on my belly."

Life in iPhone Pics - Italy

2011-11-05T11:15:00.001-05:00

More Florence

Cracked me up that instead of juice boxes there were wine boxes

On top of the duomo - 400 something steps

- Jenna

Life in iPhone Pics - Italy

2011-11-05T11:09:00.001-05:00

Next, we went to Florence. We loved our hotel there

More Florence

- Jenna

Life in iPhone Pictures - Rome

2011-11-05T10:08:00.001-05:00

This cracked me up

Triton's fountain

Ruins in Rome

Coliseum

- Jenna

Life in iPhone Pics - Italy

2011-11-05T10:02:00.001-05:00

Last night at our villa - off to Rome

Our amazing hotel room in Rome

The view of Rome from our balcony

Walking around Rome

- Jenna

Life in iPhone Pictures - Italy

2011-11-05T09:56:00.001-05:00

Amalfi coast

The cars and parking situations were very interesting

View from our villa

Pompeii

- Jenna

Life in iPhone Pictures - Italy

2011-11-05T09:48:00.001-05:00

The view from our villa on the Amalfi Coast - it was 140 steps to the villa!

Eating pizza the first night

A spot my parents wanted us to find - can't believe we spotted it. This is in Sorrento

Amalfi Coast

- Jenna

Life in iPhone Pictures - Italy

2011-11-05T09:39:00.001-05:00

On our first flight to Italy. I had stayed up the entire night before finishing things up. I still couldn't sleep very much on the flights. I don't seem to have that ability.

Jenise watched the boys for us. She truly rocks. She sent this picture of Nate

Part of the menu on our flight

Me and Charlotte

My seat was broken. They couldn't fix it, but Brad was kind enough to switch seats with me

Dinner on the plane

- Jenna

Life in iPhone Pictures

2011-11-05T09:30:00.001-05:00

Sweet kitty

Many trees looked like this in our neighborhood this summer

Mark feeding Bonnie some pizza right before she had to be put down

- Nate's birthday cake

Jenna

Life in iPhone Pictures - Brownsville

2011-10-27T21:20:00.001-05:00

We didn't have a chance to take a family vacation this summer, so when our good friends invited us to come and stay with them in Brownsville, we went. We miss these friends and their boys. Cade and their older son are good friends, and Nate and their younger son are two peas in a pod. We really had a great time.

Chase turned 14 on this trip. How did that happen?

Punk!

Playing at the beach

This picture melts me.

Playing in the waves

Nate and his BFF

Since it was Chase's birthday, he was able to bring a friend

Our friend is a dermatologist and was kind enough to freeze a spot off of Cade's hand. Cade was surprisingly brave.

The view from their back porch.

- Jenna

Life in iPhone Pictures - Nieces

2011-10-26T22:22:00.000-05:00

Life in iPhone Pictures - VBS

2011-10-26T22:19:00.001-05:00

Life in iPhone Pictures

2011-10-26T22:16:00.000-05:00

Cheesy grin from Nate - spending time in San Antonio with my sis

Chase next to the model of the world's tallest man

Life in iPhone Pictures - Fiesta Texas

2011-10-26T22:14:00.001-05:00

Phone Pictures from our Wedding Album

2011-10-26T22:11:00.000-05:00

Seventeen years - we look just the same ;-)

Life in iPhone Pictures

2011-10-26T22:09:00.000-05:00

My kitty "helping" me work

Nate at a jump place

Nate snuggling with Granddad

Being silly

Sweetness

Straight from Nate

2011-10-26T09:51:00.001-05:00

There have been lots of comments from Nate, but I have been so bad about writing them down and have forgotten lots of them. Here are the ones that I remember.

Nate is very into math right now and is constantly going over basic addition. He has grasped the concept of multiplication and is loving doing multiplication problems right now. (Future nerd maybe?) He was spouting off some multiplication when he came up with a new problem. "Mommy, Nate times Mommy equals love." Melt. My. Heart.

Nate and I were eating lunch with my sister, and he was showing off his mad math skills. She asked him what 5 times 0 is. I told her that we hadn't gone over that yet, and Nate looks at us and says, "Zero". Yikes! My sister then asked him what 32 plus 64 was. "Niecey, I don't know that, but I know what 32 plus 32 is. It is 64." I asked him how he knew that, and he told me that he learned it from Minecraft (a computer game that he loves).

I was asking Nate what a certain kid in his class looked like. The kid has an unusual name, and I was trying to get an idea of what he could look like. "Well, he has a head like an alien." He used hand motions to illustrate what he meant.

I received a text from Mark - "Nate - It's a bad idea to have dynamite in your pocket with a lighter that's on fire. It will catch the dynamite on fire and blow you up."

Nate is enjoying kindergarten for the most part. He does not like that he has to wake up while it is still "night". I don't like that either. He also asked me this morning why kindergarten has to be so long. He is doing well and loves his little friends. He really wants to invite a friend over, but I don't know the mom yet. Most afternoons he comes home with rocks - it seems that digging rocks during recess is a favorite activity.

Life in iPhone Pictures - Camp Blue Haven

2011-10-25T21:55:00.000-05:00

My nephew, with food on his face - again

Another nephew - he can frequently be found holding my niece

Another nephew- he wasn't at camp, but he was staying at a cabin. He took Cade and Nate fishing (and Cade's friend)

Another nephew - washing dishes

We had a lot of cousins at camp

Life in iPhone Pictures

2011-10-25T00:05:00.000-05:00

Boys in a tree at the farm

Celebrating Mom's birthday

My nephew with an icing problem.

Life in iPhone Pictures

2011-10-24T20:24:00.000-05:00

Izzy was too small to leave alone when we went to camp. She came with us to the farm and stayed with my parents. This is how she liked to ride in the car :-)

These are the last pictures that I have of my grandmother. This was taken in June, and she died in August. At this visit, she was no longer talking. I don't think she knew who I was.

Life in Phone Pictures

2011-10-13T02:25:00.000-05:00

Mark with our wonderful youth minister enjoying a church-approved beverage.

Nate spent the night with Charlotte, and they made him sleep in the closet. He didn't mind.

Good friend still visiting

Father's day :-)

Life in iPhone Pictures

2011-10-12T22:17:00.000-05:00

A good friend came to visit

Izzy made friends with Charlotte's dog

They are actually playing

The dogs hoping that Izzy will leave some of her food. They are out of luck.

Izzy Arrives - iPhone Pics

2011-10-12T10:06:00.000-05:00

A friend posted this picture about kittens needing a home. I have missed having a kitty, so when the gray one was female.........

Izzy comes home

She adjusted well but was so tiny!

She warmed up to Maggie right away. Maggie was a bit scared of her at first

They have become friends, and will even play together

Izzy is a super sweet kitty. The boys and I love her, and Mark doesn't mind her :-)

Life in iPhone Pictures

2011-10-11T16:16:00.000-05:00

Cheese - at Brad and Charlotte's new house.

I don't know where this picture came from.

Life in iPhone Pictures

2011-10-11T11:52:00.000-05:00

Fiesta Texas

So serious about his driving

Part of the posse

Nate making friends

Life in iPhone Pictures

2011-10-11T10:56:00.000-05:00

My cute Cade at the baseball game

Eagle Eye Dylan strikes again and found a dollar.

Six Flags by iPhone

2011-10-11T10:18:00.000-05:00

Mark took Cade to see the Rangers (with the cub scouts), so the other boys and I hung out at Six Flags

Life in iPhone pictures

2011-10-11T08:44:00.000-05:00

Nate joining me for lunch and a pedicure - he didn't get a pedicure, he just played with the chair.

Day of jumping

Lee came to visit. Nate ADORES Lee

Just a Jumbled Mess

2011-10-11T00:44:00.003-05:00

This blog has become a perfect reflection of my life. Good intentions that get pushed out of the way because I am juggling too many balls. I haven't even blogged our summer yet. I need to get some pictures and posts up, but my heart isn't in it tonight. We all feel so sad about the unexpected and unwelcome loss of a good friend. I honestly don't have words, just this jumbled mess. I still can't believe it happened, and I certainly don't understand why. I am having to watch a friend I love have to learn how to survive in life without the husband she treasured. It is just not fair. Their 2 little boys are having to try and make sense of something that simply does not make sense. It stinks. I'm angry. I don't even know how to put into words how I am feeling, and I can't imagine my friend's pain. Jason Ogle was such a great person. Everyone talks about his ever-present smile. He spread kindness and joy to all who knew him. I never heard him say a bad word about anyone. He was always one who, when he saw you, would want to talk to you and find out how things were going in your life. He loved, loved, loved his family. His actions and words showed how much he loved his wife and his boys. He was a wonderful husband, father, and friend. He made a difference in people's lives and continues to make a difference. He will be missed immensely by so many people. I will miss him.

It's just not fair.

Life in iPhone Pictures

2011-09-14T10:48:00.000-05:00

Messy mouth

My brother and his kids

Nate's preschool class

Maggie begging someone to play ball with her

Life in iPhone Pictures

2011-09-14T09:25:00.000-05:00

Something at the school, but I do not remember what

Cade looks flat in this picture

My friend Mandy from our Canton trip - we sent this picture to another friend who didn't make it

These grossed me out. Who buys a spider ring and wears it?

Life in iPhone Pictures

2011-09-14T08:40:00.000-05:00

Playing at the museum

Dinosaur day at preschool

Eating lunch with Cade at school

I have no idea, but he is cute.

The Best Part of My Mother's Day

2011-07-24T23:38:00.000-05:00

Reunion!

2011-07-24T23:34:00.003-05:00

I am truly blessed to have some wonderful friends from college. We try to get together yearly. This year, we were able to meet near Canton. It was fantastic. I would love to write more about what these friends mean to me, but I will never catch up on my blog if I do that.

We ate at a winery. The atmosphere was great. The company was stupendous. The meal....there might have been a few issues with that.

Tonya, Allison, and Amy

Mandy, Alison, and Jennifer

Tonya, Amy, and Melissa

See, I was actually there

Sheri and Anna came later. I didn't manage to get their pictures.

Mandy had a birthday!

Museum School Open House

2011-07-24T23:19:00.001-05:00

Grammy and Granddad were able to attend Nate's museum school open house with us - checking out the skunk

Notice how Chase has a phone in his hand...his texting has gotten out of control. He is sitting next to me right now, texting.

Funny boys

Love their expressions!

Jamming out

Another turtle picture attempt, another failure

Dairy Queen after!

Turtle Picture

2011-07-24T23:01:00.000-05:00

Nate had open house at museum school. Of course we had to take a turtle picture....or try to take one

Not quite right

Ummmm, maybe not that one

Strained face on Nate, and Dylan.....why my friend?

Chase graced us with his presence, but Dylan.....

Easter 2011

2011-07-20T14:49:00.000-05:00

Easter this year was a bit lame. Could I find all the baskets? That would be a no, but we improvised. Did we decorate eggs? Maybe in our dreams. Did my boys look handsome in their new outfits for church on Easter Sunday? What new outfits? Did I take more than 3 pictures? See for yourself. Will I do better next year? Let's hope so!!

Lake Trip with Small Group

2011-06-22T19:39:00.000-05:00

I can't believe I haven't posted in a month - and I am still trying to catch up April. Can you tell that I have been busy? We were able to go to the lake with some small group friends. We had a great time.

Sweet Colton helping Nate out

Dylan built this boat by himself and couldn't wait to try it out. I was a meanie who wouldn't let him go try it out by himself in a pond by our house.

Looks like I made the right call

Chase and his special "friend"

Blue and Gold Banquet

2011-05-23T17:44:00.000-05:00

Cade with a buddy

The boys were impressed with this cake

Cade receiving his Bobcat. He was told that he couldn't turn it over until he did a good deed without being asked. The instant we were home, he ran to the laundry room and moved the clothes from the washer to the dryer. Maybe I need to give him a badge every day that he can't turn over until he does his chores :-)

Star Student Poster

2011-05-23T17:30:00.001-05:00

Not my best work....but Nate was happy. That is what matters, right?

Cub Scouts

2011-05-06T00:26:00.000-05:00

Another mom was kind and shared some pictures of Cade

Cade being introduced at his first pack meeting. You can see his anxiety

Campout pictures. He had a great time and still talks about it, especially about the dirt pile.

Apparently, he loved this stick

Museum Trip with Cousins

2011-05-04T21:58:00.000-05:00

Cousins came to visit so we headed to the museum. It was wonderful to see them. My nephew and nieces are really great kids, and I am always glad to spend time with them.

She is so photogenic!

The eye squint is going on.

Rounding up cattle

Nate loves to push his cousin around in the stroller

Muffins for Mom

2011-04-26T08:37:00.000-05:00

Cade's school had Muffins for Mom early in the morning. It was yummy fun

This picture cracks me up.

Do you think these 2 have my eyes?

More Cub Scout Fun

2011-04-25T23:27:00.000-05:00

Cade was very excited to finally get his uniform. I was very excited that my friend, Debby, was willing to sew on the patches!! Debby rocks!!

The scouts visited BNSF Railways.

Nate and the Ironing Board

2011-04-20T11:37:00.000-05:00

Running through the house chasing Maggie, laughing, and then tragedy. BAM! Crashed right into the ironing board. The true tragedy of the situation, Nate did not know that it was called an ironing board since he had not been exposed to it very much in his lifetime. He described it as "that thing you put clothes on and steam comes up".

My Recent Fortune

2011-04-18T23:57:00.001-05:00

- sigh

Jenna

Cub Scout Campout

2011-04-15T08:27:00.000-05:00

Cade just joined cub scouts. He joined in time to attend the campout. He had a great time.

Kite flying

Going to bed

Here is how he looked the next morning

Cade took this picture of Mark

There was fishing

Flag ceremonies

And of course, FIRE

Smores...the perfect ending

Dylan and His Music

2011-04-14T23:39:00.000-05:00

My sweet Dylan was born with a cleft in his hand. Although it was repaired, his pinky on his right hand is missing some tendons. It will always be small and have very limited function. It doesn't bother him; it's just his special finger. When he was born, I remember feeling fiercely protective of him. His finger set off the "mama bear" in me. I remember talking to Mark about it and commenting that it wouldn't really bother Dylan unless he wanted to play the piano or something like that, and what were the chances of that. Hahahahaha, God does have a sense of humor. My Dylan loves music. He has started to play the trumpet this year (the same one his dad played). He loves it and practices often. He works hard and alternates between first chair and second chair. He really wanted a keyboard for his birthday. Yup, my boy wants to play the piano. I think he will do just fine, special pinky and all.

Will Nate follow in Dylan's footsteps?

Random Phone Pics

2011-04-14T11:19:00.001-05:00

One of Dylan's fishing poles got caught up in the door.

Cade when I brought donuts to his class to celebrate his birthday

Maggie is a very sweet and tolerant dog

Nate spent the night at Brad and Charlotte's hotel. He crawled right into bed. So cute

Playing with a new app on my phone. One of my favorite pictures

A friend took this picture - Nate was having a very hard time with his asthma at this point

Crashed!

TPeed - AGAIN

2011-04-14T11:14:00.000-05:00

Time #3 - this one happened the morning after Dylan's party.

Dylan's Birthday Party

2011-04-11T08:11:00.000-05:00

Dylan had a sleepover for his birthday. We went to a movie and ate pizza. The guest limit was limited to the number of kids I could fit in my car. I was thinking that was a good thing when it was midnight and they were still going strong. These pictures are all out of order, but I don't want to take the time to fix them.

They were so full from the Pizza that they hardly ate any cake.

Mark and I took Dylan shopping for is present from us. We wanted him to have some input. He was thrilled. Now we just need to get him into some lessons.

We saw "Rango". The kids loved it, me.....not so much.

Cade's Birthday Party

2011-04-10T08:07:00.000-05:00

This year Cade wanted to go to Six Flags for his birthday. He had a friend spend the night (his friend's brother is Dylan's buddy so he spent the night also).

Building the Lego set that his buddy got for him

Pancakes after Six Flags - cousins were able to come to Six Flags with us

It was crowded, but they still had fun

Playing a game

Cade's friend was the big winner

Stopped for ice cream on the way home

Birthdays, Birthdays, Birthdays

2011-04-09T22:55:00.000-05:00

There are a lot of March birthdays in our family. Two of my boys, a nephew, and a niece. Since we had family in town on Cade's birthday, we celebrated 3 birthdays at once.

Since it was Cade's actual birthday, he got his own cake.

My nephew and Dylan had to share a cake. My nephew is now 16 years old!!! How did that happen?

The birthday boys.

Cade was thrilled with his presents.

Do you think he likes Legos?

My nephew was thrilled with his presents, really he was. He was especially happy to get Black Ops for the Xbox. He had got it around Christmas and had brought it to our house. It was in the Xbox when the Xbox was bumped. The game was destroyed. He was so happy again. He really wanted to play it at our house. His mom and I most likely stressed to him that it probably wasn't a good idea. He might have disregarded our advice and the Xbox might have been bumped again within minutes of insertion and the game just possibly might have been destroyed. He was warned.

Dylan was thrilled with his new Bible

Someday Soon

2011-04-04T22:51:00.000-05:00

Someday soon.....

action figures will no longer guard my shampoo, and I will miss them.

Chase - Tennis

2011-04-03T21:45:00.000-05:00

Chase went from playing basketball to playing tennis. Not really a spectator sport. How well is it going? About as well as football and basketball went.

Nate's Work

2011-04-02T16:34:00.000-05:00

My sweet Nate cracks me up. Here are some of his work projects from preschool this year.

I have worked really hard to let him know that girls can do the same things that boys can do. Is this a sign of success?

I am fixing the roof again. I don't know why he is stuck on this. We haven't had our roof repaired and I haven't been hanging out on the roof.

That's right baby, Target is the place to shop.

Good thing he likes Six Flags. We "vacation" there often.

Ummmmmm

I don't even think he knows what hockey is, seriously!

Need I say more?

Nate's Preschool Program

2011-04-01T11:31:00.000-05:00

I might have shed a few tears knowing that this is Nate's final preschool spring program. I don't know how I am going to survive his preschool graduation.

Nate's buddy

Nate with his wonderful preschool teachers

Cade

2011-03-31T12:53:00.000-05:00

We recently had some testing done on Cade. I am struggling a bit about what to put on the blog. This blog is mostly for me. It is my scrapbook, but it is also public. I don't want to say things that Cade would regret me saying some day, but maybe someone out there is dealing with the same struggles and would benefit from my writing about it. At this point, I just don't know how much I will (or should) write about it. I will say that the results did not surprise us at all, they simply confirmed what we already believed. The testing revealed many of his strengths, such as his intelligence. It is believed by everyone that the struggles that he does have are able to be addressed and that he will grow up to be a happy and productive person, he just may have to work harder in some areas. The testing has also made me more aware of how excellent Cade's teachers are and have been and what a great school he attends. His teacher is already doing the majority of the things that are recommended.

Cade is one of the sweetest boys. He is loving and sweet and smart and cute and a loyal friend and simply precious. That is what I want others to know about my Cader Raider.

By: Caitlin Wray as found on Hartley's Life with 3 Boys

Different Enough

Different enough

to feel like an alien.

Same enough

To bleed red.

Different enough

To be hurt by your touch.

Same enough

To crave it.

Different enough

To get tongue tied.

Same enough

To have something to say.

Different enough

To be awkward.

Same enough

To know it.

Different enough

To struggle with standards.

Same enough

To be held to them.

Different enough

To garner their stares.

Same enough

To notice them.

Different enough

To be an outsider.

Same enough

To want in.

Cade at UIL

2011-03-27T22:13:00.000-05:00

Cade was in storytelling this year. Here he is all ready for the UIL competition. Doesn't he look so cute. He was very sad that he didn't advance.

The box that he made for his Valentine's party made me laugh. Why are there fish on it?

Snow Days 2011

2011-03-26T19:05:00.000-05:00

Yes, I know that it is officially spring, but I have been busy and am behind in my blogging. Here are the pictures from the 5 snow days we had this year. It was so cold! Our t.v., internet, and phones were down from Wednesday through Saturday. That really stunk! The boys had a great time!

Chase was outside most of the time. I don't know how he could stand it. It was so very cold.

They ate a lot of popcorn and watched a lot of movies

Many Legos were built

Even Maggie had fun

This is what our house looked like after days and days stuck inside. It was not pretty

Last Group of Phone Pictures

2011-03-26T17:40:00.000-05:00

Chase touching a cow tongue

Something that I am seeing too often lately

Nate reading a book to his brothers

Nothing like a good ice cream face

Straight From Nate

2011-03-13T00:05:00.001-06:00

My car was having some battery issues and wouldn't start, so Nate and I loaded up into Mark's pick-up truck.

"Mom, are you sure you know how to control Dad's truck?"

Nothing like a vote of confidence from my sweet chauvinist.

- Jenna

The End of an Era

2011-03-09T23:39:00.001-06:00

This sign brings me sadness. It signifies the end of an era for me. Let me explain. I tend to work on the weekends and often I am flying to my appointment. Southwest and Love Field airport have been a beautiful combination for me. The airport is a 45 minute drive from my house. Before the shut down of this pedestrian bridge, I could LEAVE my house an hour before my flight and still make my flight. Believe me, I tested this theory more than once. I would drive to the third level, park by the door, and walk over the bridge. I would then breeze through security and walk straight to my gate and often straight onto the plane. It was a beautiful system. And now it has permanently ended. Now I will have to leave an extra 15 minutes. Oh, the tragedy ;-)

Yes, More Phone Pictures

2011-03-09T17:35:00.000-06:00

I know this is a bad picture, but it cracks me up how Cade likes to sleep behind the couch

This is why we paid to have our house painted. They did a fabulous job , and I am overjoyed to have the house painted.

This one never ceases to crack me up

More Random Phone Pics

2011-03-07T23:35:00.000-06:00

Hanging out at McDonald's with some preschool peeps

They love each other

Fun at the museum

Cade was a volunteer at the "bully assembly". A sweet teacher sent me this picture

Few More Phone Pictures

2011-03-07T21:40:00.000-06:00

How Nate "parties" on New Year's Eve

A common sight

Fun with Cousins in Abilene - Phone Pictures

2011-03-02T13:20:00.000-06:00

No comment :-)

Riding go-carts with cousins

Making cinnamon rolls with Aunt Charlotte - they were yummy!!

I really need to get this boy some lessons.

Phone Pictures - Christmas in Abilene

2011-02-27T22:45:00.000-06:00

Some high quality phone pictures from our time in Abilene celebrating with Mark's family

Cute treats my mother-in-law made

That Trent is a nut

Nate adores his cousin, Lee

Skiing and Christmas Phone Pictures

2011-02-27T22:40:00.000-06:00

Snow conditions were bad

Cade Skiing Video 2

2011-02-24T18:33:00.001-06:00

YouTube Video

- Jenna

Cade's First Ski Trip

2011-02-24T18:31:00.001-06:00

YouTube Video

- Jenna

Random Phone Pics

2011-02-24T18:25:00.000-06:00

Giving Santa his letter

my niece and nephew

A Few Random Phone Pictures

2011-02-22T15:07:00.000-06:00

Nate with his creation and his cheesy smile.

Nate LOVES his books that are on my Nook

Always thinking about others - baby Jesus might be thirsty.

My sweet Cade with his favorite jacket that he wears ALL OF THE TIME (except for when I steal it to wash it)

Museum

2011-02-22T14:10:00.000-06:00

Another random Monday where the boys didn't have school but Nate had museum school. I accidentally left my long lens on the camera, so the pictures are few and not the best quality. The boys had fun (especially Cade). Check out the giant lite-brite in the back! I wanted to play with that.

More Basketball

2011-02-22T11:35:00.000-06:00

We have watched a lot of this the past few months. I'm not going to lie, a lot of it was PAINFUL. I think I better not type anything else.

Straight From Nate

2011-02-22T10:12:00.000-06:00

Riding past a beautiful old cemetery, Nate notices that it looks different than the other buildings all around.

"What is that?"

"That is a cemetery. When someone dies, then sometimes their family will bury their body there. The family will then have a place to go and remember that person and think about that person."

"But what about zombies?"

Final Christmas Post

2011-02-01T13:30:00.000-06:00

My niece

My nephew - he is a sports fan!

Karoke fun

My brother playing with his son's present :-)

Cinnamon rolls - yummy!

Mommy Guilt Monday - Dream Daughter

2011-01-31T01:31:00.001-06:00

Important Note: I love my boys with my every ounce of my heart and soul and would not trade a single one of them. Carry on...

Driving home from work, I was listening to a Pandora station that was nailing my mood perfectly. Out of nowhere, a song from "The Little Mermaid" popped up. Tears started streaming down my face. You know the song, "Look at this stuff. Isn't it neat? Wouldn't you think my collection's complete? Wouldn't you think I'm a girl, a girl with everything.....I want more." Why would that song trigger me?

From the time I was very young, I knew that I wanted to be a mom. Not an unusual dream for a little girl. I dreamed of having a lot of kids, at LEAST 4. Most importantly, I dreamed of having a daughter. Well, dreamed is not quite the right word. I knew that I would have a daughter. It was a given. I grew older, and the dream didn't change. Lots of kids, including a daughter. I read the "Little House on the Prairie" series and fell in love with Anne Shirley. Someday, I would share these loves with my daughter. I grew older, but I didn't grow out of my dream. Still wanted lots of kids, including a daughter. I played the MASH game (kids of the 80's, you know what I am talking about), and it didn't matter to me what dream guy I got (crush of the month, Kirk Cameron, or Jason Bateman were often on the list). I just wanted the highest number of kids. Still wanted lots of kids, including a daughter. I went to college, and the dream remained the same. I was lucky enough to meet a great guy. The dream was beginning to feel like it was going to be my reality. I just needed to convince Mark that my dream was a good dream ;-) Lots of kids, including a daughter. We married, and my dream remained. The day I found out I was pregnant was the beginning of the dream come true. I was so happy. I dreamed of tea parties, kitchen sets, and dolls. I envisioned ballet classes, gymnastics, and glitter. I pictured girl dress up clothes, plastic crowns, and doll houses. And the clothes.....the cute girl clothes, and bows, and SHOES. Before we even knew the gender, I bought one item of clothing....the cutest little dress. I dreamed of my daughter wearing it. I finally got rid of that dress for obvious reasons. Every pregnancy, I just knew it was a girl. I wasn't worried after the first 2, because I knew I had at least one more shot. After the 3rd, I was so afraid that Mark would not want another. After the 4th...........

Here's the deal, I LOVE my boys. LOVE them. Would not trade a single one of them. Cannot imagine life without them. But, my heart still aches for that dream girl. I can handle the fact that I don't have a girl right now, but what breaks my heart is that I WON'T have a girl, EVER. That dream is dead. I feel incredibly selfish, greedy, and guilty for grieving this. My boys bring me so much joy. I am so blessed to have them. I see the pain that families go through when they are not able to have a child, or they are only able to have one. They would give anything to have my problem. Seriously, what do I have to complain about? I have 4 of the best boys ever, and I feel that it isn't enough. My head gets this, but my heart.....my heart aches for my daughter, my dream daughter. I don't know how to fix this. I keep expecting it to get better, but it just keeps getting worse, probably because I am hyper aware of how quickly Chase is growing up (4 1/2 years until he is 18, 18 people!) and because my sweet baby starts kindergarten this year (you might want to avoid me in August). Please don't tell me that someday I will probably have granddaughters and daughter-in-laws, it doesn't help me. Telling me that I won't have to worry about paying for a wedding just reminds me that I will never be able to plan a wedding with my daughter. It will be fine, I know it will be. I still have my sweet and smelly boys, and the joy they bring greatly outweighs the grief. Maybe I will get a cat....a FEMALE one.

Santa's Visit - 2010

2011-01-30T21:31:00.000-06:00

Barely squeaking this post in before FEBRUARY - Will I ever catch up on the blog?

Chase must have been very, very good this year since Santa actually delivered an XBox

Cade's loot

Dylan's stack

Nate's goodies - anyone notice a theme with Nate's stuff?

Dylan's fave was the fishing book

Christmas Eve Loot

2011-01-21T21:49:00.000-06:00

Two words: spoiled rotten

He had been wanting the Twin Eagle for a while. He was thrilled.

The boy loves LEGOS

Thrilled with his Star Wars Mighty Beans

Cade badly wanted this, and it broke within 5 minutes - I kid you not. It was a piece of junk. We returned it for something else he wanted.

Chase was begging for an XBox, and I told him "not a chance". Here is his present from me, an X in a box - an XBox. I thought it was funnier than he did.

The pillow pets were a BIG hit - they are still used and loved every day.

Pillow pet pals

Sheri reading the kids a story before bed

Christmas Eve - First Set

2011-01-20T17:26:00.000-06:00

Nate showing the cousins one of the Nook books which read out loud

Chase reading a book to Nate

Cade's nose did not appreciate the dry air. He had several nosebleeds. The kids made signs for Santa and hung them up all over - so that Santa would know where everyone's toys went.

In my family, we open up family gifts on Christmas Eve. The kids were very excited. My grandmother did not feel up to coming, which was sad. She made it the next day, but she is not doing very well.

Twinks

2011-01-20T10:57:00.001-06:00

We had to buy dress pants for Chase for the band concert. His buddy was there doing the same thing. They went shopping together. Maybe I do have a girl ;-). I am very happy with the friends that Chase has made. This friend is a good kid, even if he is a Giants fan.

- Jenna

Photography by Dylan

2011-01-19T10:30:00.000-06:00

It always cracks me up to see what pictures Dylan has taken.

This one is pretty cute

Our elf, "Scout"

Ummmm

They all thought it was funny to put a hair band in Nate's hair

Dylan's loot

Ski Trip - Set 3

2011-01-15T12:48:00.000-06:00

Cuties at lunch

My sweet niece

Nate really just liked wearing random ski gear - like the googles

Cade was worn out at this point

Ski Trip Set 2

2011-01-14T21:10:00.000-06:00

Nate had no desire to try skiing. He wanted to be spoiled by Mimi. He did think it was great fun to try ski boots.

Normally, the ground would be completely covered with snow

My niece and.....I can't tell

My nephew

Chase

My nephew and Cade

Some of the gang

Dylan

My dad, Dylan, and Cade

Chase with Lanae and Mark in the background

Ski Trip - Set 1

2011-01-14T19:32:00.000-06:00

We were able to take a ski trip with my family. The snow conditions were horrible - HORRIBLE, but it was okay since the kids are beginners. There was 1 run open in the front, and 2 runs open in the back. The lift tickets were half off which was a bonus! The crowds weren't bad at all, and the run in the back was in good shape. Overall, everyone had a great time.

Cade really wanted to try skiing this time. Mark took him while I went off with Chase and Dylan. Cade did better than expected. I thought he did a great job! I was proud of his attitude and the joy that he showed even when he fell. He liked it so much that he wanted to ski again the next day. Things like this are hard for my boy, so I was extra proud of him.

My sis with Nate and my niece.

Ski Trip Picture

2011-01-14T15:43:00.001-06:00

We were able to take a ski trip with my family over Christmas break. Cade went skiing for the first time. He did really well :-) More about the ski trip later but here is a picture at the top of the mountain.

Santa Picture 2010

2011-01-14T13:32:00.002-06:00

I wonder how much longer I can get Chase to agree to these pictures? Luckily I was able to get him in it for this year!

Cade's Christmas Party

2011-01-14T13:28:00.000-06:00

There were pajamas and donuts

games

a big brother helping his little brother out

a class of cuties

the silly picture

a sing-a-long

me with 2 of my cuties

and a cute friend - Good times

Nate's Christmas Program

2011-01-13T21:07:00.000-06:00

Pure cuteness!

Nate's School Christmas Party

2011-01-13T20:39:00.000-06:00

Nate had a great time at his preschool party. He has FANTASTIC teachers. Here is one of his teachers being made into a Christmas tree.

Nate with his buddy - they are about to decorate cookies

See the icing on his face :-)

I Bet You Didn't Know

2011-01-11T14:35:00.001-06:00

That I roofed our home ;-)

- Jenna

Band Concert

2011-01-11T10:46:00.000-06:00

My Dylan is loving band....LOVING it. He dreams of being in the marching band one day. He was incredibly excited about his first concert. Do you see him on stage? Yea, we couldn't either.

Chase's concert was right after Dylan's. Chase is NOT loving band. This will be his last year.

But he sure looked cute in his band clothes.

My band boys

O Christmas Tree

2011-01-10T23:17:00.000-06:00

My dad actually helped set up my Christmas tree - something he is not a fan of doing. He must love me.

The boys had a great time hanging up the ornaments.

Chase took care of the high ones.

Grammy sends the chocolate Advent calendars every year - and the boys love them every year.

Thanksgiving 2010

2011-01-09T21:23:00.000-06:00

Yes, I am just now posting about Thanksgiving. Things have been busy!

We had Thanksgiving at our house this year. I didn't take a lot of pictures, because, well, I was busy. Mark's parents, my parents, Mark's sister (the one in Abilene) and her family were all at our house.

Mark's mom had a craft project for the kids - making Oreo turkeys.

Pretty cute

I forgot to take any pictures after this. Did I mention that life has been busy?

Cade's Project

2011-01-02T22:51:00.000-06:00

Cade's project on Capt. Sully. We call these "projects" parent homework. You know it's true.

Basketball

2011-01-02T22:49:00.000-06:00

We went from football into basketball. I played basketball growing up, so I am loving watching Chase play.

The first game was at his friend's school, so his friend came to watch. I couldn't get his friend to say who he was rooting for ;-)