Rub A Dub Dub...

Olivia LOVES her Tub!! We bought it for Christmas, but then I couldn't decide if I wanted to have such a big thing hanging around in our small bathroom...so it sat in our bedroom unopened for 6 weeks! Finally, Olivia hit 3 months and we decided it was time to give it a try.

Bath time is fun again!!

Olivia at 3 months

What sweet baby! Olivia is "talking" and smiling so much more. Still sleeping through the night and has survived her brothers so far!

She finds her thumb from time to time...Elise doesn't think she could get any cuter and loves to share a room with her!

Oh how we love this sweet baby!

Happy Birthday Josh!!

Josh turned 32! This year we had a quiet dinner (as quiet as it gets with 4 kids 6 and under). I tried my hand at making pasta with a bacon carbonara sauce and steamed asparagus for Josh's birthday dinner. Pictured above is Josh's new favorite..."coconut cream cake". So easy and yet SOOOO yummy! Later we had some friends over for more snacks. I tried to keep it a surprise but the house was "too" tidy so he knew something was up... surprise or not it was a fun evening!

Just Some Random January Pictures...

Olivia, laughing with her Daddy!

Those sweet sweet smiles!

I bought these little boots before I had Thomas...got them out thinking they would still be huge and they barely fit!! Had to document our first and only time wearing them.

Our first attempt with a little pony tail...not too successful.

Our WONDERFUL neighbor (and Michigan Grandma), Marisa.

Snow Fun!

Well, there was finally enough snow for the kids to get out and enjoy. Olivia (as usual) stayed in and slept.
I had to catch these sweeties in action...

I think their faces say it ALL!

Zachary is 5!!

With Zachary's birthday being a week after Christmas and still having a new baby we decided that having a party OUT of the house would be the best fit for us this year. I LOVE my sweet boys but I didn't need to have 15 5 year old boys running through my house...So, we opted for the Bounce House down the street. I think it worked out pretty well. Since re-opening they have added 36 arcade games (set to FREE play) as well as the bouncers...a little boy's dream! Actually, some of the boys wouldn't leave the games and sat glossy eyed the whole time until the cake. This year we didn't need to worry about decorating, cleaning, prepping for games and yet, long before the party started I found this...

Josh and Olivia were completely asleep on the couch (even with the others climbing all over them).

The Birthday Boy!

Zac, Elise and Vivien (the ONLY "girl" invited to his party...not counting family)

the arcade... need I say more?!

cupcakes and juice. Zac wanted Red icing to go with his "bakugan" party. I had to use an entire tube of red gel food coloring to get it looking like that...that cannot be healthy!

I'm pretty sure Thomas just ate the icing!

Olivia slept the whole time...

Present time...

We can't believe our Zachary is getting so big! He amazes us with how friendly, thoughtful and creative he is. He flashes that big smile and no matter what he's done you can't be mad for long! He'll have you laughing at his jokes or one liners and trying to follow his VERY detailed stories. We sure love you Zac!

Olivia at 2 Months

What a sweet little girl. Olivia is smiling so much more. Finding her fingers. Sleeping great. Could it get any better?

Merry Christmas!

I realize that this post is a "little" past due but Christmas isn't something that I can just skip over. We had a WONDERFUL Christmas! Christmas Eve was spent with good friends having an AMAZING dinner. When we returned home the elves had left some Christmas pj's on our door step for the kids...I have never seen them get changed so fast! Christmas morning was so fun (as always). Everyone slept in!!! which is normally great but this year we were having one group of people over for a late breakfast (Josh made crepes with ALL the fixings). and we were hosting the Residents for a potluck dinner that night. So, we were a little behind schedule but managed to have some fun during the chaos.the kids opening their gifts from Santa

Thomas, wishing he could read...

Elise and her LONG awaited Baby Alive Doll that eats and goes potty. She changed about 10 diapers before we finished breakfast!

This is how Olivia spent her first Christmas...

the unwrapping of the Wii!!!

Most of the group.

I'm not sure how it happened but I failed to get any pictures of either of our meals that day. The breakfast was delicious. We enjoyed visiting with the Schell's and the missionaries. Dinner was VERY tasty!! I'm pretty sure that was the juiciest turkey I have ever had! The best part about Christmas dinner is the leftovers...and we enjoyed those for a few days! It was a Wonderfully EXHAUSTING day.

Olivia

Here are a few pictures of Olivia at about 6 weeks. She is smiling so much more and lately we've even heard a few giggles sneak out. She is sleeping through the night now and we're able to get a little bit of a routine in place it seems. We sure love this "sweet little peanut" as Thomas calls her.

Blessing Day

Olivia was blessed at church on December 6th. My Dad was able to make a quick trip in to town for the occasion as well. We sure love having my Dad for a visit! Olivia tends to be a little fussy lately so we didn't get too many pictures before changing her out of the dress. I bought this dress when Zachary was about 8 months old, hoping that I would have another girl that would be able to use it so that morning the tags finally came off (I probably should have tried it on her before we got to church but thankfully it fit just fine).

I wasn't going to use the bonnet but Elise insisted that it would look SOOOO adorable! (I think she has been waiting for someone to wear this dress too!).