Soccer Season Ends

Whew! It was a fun few months of early Saturday mornings at the soccer fields, despite our struggles with shin guards! :) All three girls got trophies the last day and all four kids enjoyed the post-game playtimes at the park next to the fields.

SJ with her first trophy!

Way to Go, AG!

How do you celebrate when the biggest sister finishes her math for her first grade year? We say ice cream!

Mother's Day

I am so thankful to be a mom to these precious kids and to have gotten to celebrate the day with them by opening sweet gifts, homemade cards, going to church, and then out to lunch with one of my favorite mothers: T's! It was a great day, start to finish!

Day at Mimi and PawPaw's

The day before Mother's Day found us making a little road trip to visit family at Mimi and PawPaw's house. As usual, it was a fun and relaxing time to catch up, play, enjoy some great food, and enjoy some time outside, too!

RLP I and RLP IV greeting one another


It was a beautiful day and the kids had fun exploring in the yard and picking daisies.


This photo looks so familiar...because I take it every visit! The girls love for Mimi to read to them as they sit on the arms of her chair.


SJ cuddling with Nana


RL having a laugh with Grandpa


Our flower child


RL was happy as could be to march through the flower beds.


AG got a little help to get up here. She really wants to climb trees but hasn't had a lot of good experience in really good climbing trees. We're on the lookout for some!

It was a great day...we always love our time with the P family and treasure all the memories we get to make at Mimi and PawPaw's house!

Co-op Field Day

Our last day of co-op was May 6, and we wrapped up with lunch and some fun outdoor games for the kids. Oh, and face-painting!

AG taking her turn through the obstacle course...


LL waiting her turn for the next event...

Our little tiger...

Hoopin' it up...

and a random one of SJ, who often comes up with her own fun ideas while I work on school activities with AG and LL. On this day she was happily reading Raggedy Ann a princess story at the table (until I came along and interrupted her with the unwelcome camera!).

A May Day, Complete with Hay

A few weeks ago we took a little field trip with some friends, beginning with a park outing. I am taking this chance to update on RL at 18 months, because I don't think I've done that and looking at these pics of him with his longer hair (pre-real haircut that happened just days after these were taken) makes me think he is growing up too fast.


He is, for the most part, a pretty laidback guy, but he has definite moments which make us think, "Oh, this is what they mean by 'strong-willed child'. Is that his personality, or is it just being a normal boy? He loves tromping around the house and getting into things, points to/picks up/asks for "shoes" as soon as he gets out of bed, daily talks about the "moon" as a reference to anything sky-related, uses "Rah" as his greatest term of endearment (whether talking about his lovie, Ralph, or a cracker!), and is still a champ of a hugger. He's starting to occasionally feed himself with a spoon, share with his sisters (with encouragement!), and show kindness and gentleness to his sisters (though the best examples of that have been after he hit them and realized he hurt them). We love this little guy so much and are so thankful to have him around! And, though I haven't even posted pics of his first official haircut yet, know that if we can manage it this summer the shaggy hair will be back eventually!

Back to our field trip: we went to a local event aimed at teaching about and celebrating agriculture. t was a fun time of hands-on learning about local crops, animals, and forestry. The girls especially enjoyed the animals, and SJ was probably the bravest of all in getting to know them.

April Wrap-Up

A few more April playtime moments caught for the record:

RL's first playtime in the sand at the park. He was fascinated.

Is that an idea forming?

Ummhmm, a little taste test. It was bound to happen!

Slides are mostly good for climbing: a stage it seems all of ours have gone through.


Bike parade: AG got two new wheels for her birthday, and LL was hard at work getting the hang of balancing on two wheels herself. SJ is content with 3, but she prefers wings in addition to those.


Backdoor guests are best! Fiona, the neighbors' cat, seems to spend 90% of her time somewhere on our property, and this day she got plenty of attention though she didn't get to come in.

Sweet smiles...


We got to see Gran and PopPop for a short visit before they went on a big trip. We look forward to catching up with them again later this week.

It's a...

BOY! We found out last Friday that this little one we await is a little brother! Everything looked good on the ultrasound and he will likely arrive at the end of September, if all goes as hoped. We took everyone along that day for the appointment and the girls are excited to know the news, as we are. And as for RL, he's still pretty much totally unaware of the baby on the way...but one day I'm sure he'll be very thankful to have a brother!
(The photo was taken the evening of our appointment after we all went out to Jason's Deli to celebrate the news!)

Our Easter Sunday

So clearly I am behind, but here are some photos of or little ones on Easter. Since Louis was feverish that morning, he and I went to church after T and the girls and then immediately afterward he napped, so I ended up with no pics of him dressed or having any fun that day. But the girls had a wonderful time hunting eggs at our friends' house that day after lunch. It was a day of celebration and sweetness!